Will Derrick Favors re-sign with the Utah Jazz?

Things have been pretty quiet regarding Derrick Favors’ free agency decision all season. Although that may change soon. According to Tony Jones, who caught up with the longtime Utah Jazz forward, it looks like both parties are interested in a new deal.

Probably the most telling quote from Favors was about his conversations with the team.

“The communication has been good,” Favors told The Tribune this week. “I’m pretty sure me and my agent [Wallace Prather] will get a meeting set up, and we’ll figure some things out. I know they want me back, and I want to come back. But, it’s a business and a numbers game, so we’ll have to see.”

Having open communication is key to getting a deal done. The biggest sign a player is leaving is a rift between the organization and player. To see that the relationship is healthy between both sides is encouraging.

Favors does mention that this is a “numbers game” which means he’s rightfully looking for the best deal possible. Therefore the decision will be heavily influenced by the market. Is there a team out there that will want to throw big money at Derrick Favors? Time will tell, but it looks like if Favors receives reasonable offers, and the goals of both sides align, he has a good chance to be a Jazzman next season.

The Jazz also offered a qualifying offer to Dante Exum, Raul Neto and Georges Niang.

This is the first step in re-signing Dante Exum. His hot finish to the season returning from injury, coupled with his impressive defense on MVP James Harden, makes him a promising prospect that has a chance to grow alongside Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert. With the qualifying offer extended, will the Jazz match any offer given to Exum?

According to Zach Lowe the NBA is considering moving free agency ahead of the draft.

Is it surprising that “prominent general managers” are embracing this? This feels like a no brainer that should have been done ages ago. But if we can’t get rid of conferences soon, at the very least we can have this.

Imagine if the Jazz knew Gordon Hayward was leaving before the draft. You can bet things would have changed. Luckily, the Jazz ended up with the player’s choice Rookie of the Year, but maybe they would have come out with something more.

An NBA trade happened! Austin Rivers was traded for Marcin Gortat.

Exciting!

Okay I’m more happy there’s something to discuss.

Is this the precursor to more moves? As soon as free agency begins the dominoes will start to fall. In the upcoming days it’ll be interesting to see what moves teams make in preparation for the opening of free agency.

Speaking of free agency, SportsCenter released the first part of a documentary series of Paul George’s free agency journey.

It’s actually worth a watch and gives an interesting insight into past decisions Paul George has made and what will influence his decision now. In the video it says that he “...wants to win a championship and to play with guys who want to win a championship.”

Will that be with the Utah Jazz?