Veteran point guard Patrick Beverley has had quite the jet-setting summer, as he was involved in a second offseason trade today when the Lakers acquired him from the Jazz, who had, in turn, added him as part of its return package for Rudy Gobert. Los Angeles sent Utah swingman Talen Horton-Tucker and forward Stanley Johnson in the exchange.
Beverley actually has an aggregate restriction clause in his contract, stating that he cannot be combined (aggregated) with the contract of another player prior to September 6 this year, when the aggregate restriction expires.
Bobby Marks of ESPN (YouTube video link) has explained why Beverley was not impacted by the aggregate restriction. “Beverley is not being combined with salary… there’s not another player on the Utah Jazz who’s going out in the deal,” Marks said. “If that was the case, they’d have to go out in the first week of September.”
Here’s more news and notes following the deal:
- In the wake of the Beverley trade, HoopsHype’s Yassi Gozlan considers possible next steps for both the Lakers and Jazz. Gozlan considers Russell Westbrook the next potential domino to be dealt in L.A. Conversely, he expects Utah to consider off-loading other veterans on its roster.
- Both the Jazz and the Lakers benefitted from the deal, per Sam Vecenie of The Athletic. Vecenie grades both clubs on the transaction. He notes that, in Beverley, the Lakers are adding a proven veteran poised to reinvigorate the club with contributions that go beyond the box score. On the Utah side of the equation, Vecenie writes that the Jazz are essentially banking on the 21-year-old Horton-Tucker’s potential. Rohan Nadkarni of Sports Illustrated also weighed in with his own trade-grade column, giving both clubs mediocre, passing scores.
- Talen Horton-Tucker will get plenty of opportunities to play with the ball in his hands in Utah, which could be the best use of his unique skill set and physical gifts, opines Sam Vecenie of The Athletic. Horton-Tucker was a clunky fit in Los Angeles as a below-average three-point shooter who failed to consistently defend at a high level. As an athletic creator, Horton-Tucker has shown flashes of intrigue with drive-and-kick playmaking. The Jazz will be able to give him more time to develop and improve in his current areas of strength, away from the win-now pressures of L.A.
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