To loosely quote Rudy Gobert, another day, another trade rumor. The Utah Jazz's star center is rumored to be on his way out of town via trade and has been linked to a few potential landing spots since the offseason began.
Between those rumors and a dust-up with Shaquille O'Neal, Gobert's offseason has been entertaining thus far. Never a dull moment.
And now for something completely similar. The Athletic's Chris Kirschner wrote in a mailbag this week that the Atlanta Hawks are a team to watch if in fact the Jazz decide to actually take phone calls on Gobert's availability.
I’m closely monitoring Utah’s situation with both Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell. If either — or both — become available, the Hawks should be interested. I’ve heard the Jazz like De'Andre Hunter's game, and he’s, theoretically, what they need more of moving forward if Mitchell is whom they decide to build around. Utah needs more perimeter defense, maybe worse than Atlanta, if you can actually imagine that after what we watched this season.
If Mitchell or Gobert became available, I’d say the latter is the likelier option for the Hawks to land. There’s just been too much buzz in league circles with Mitchell to the Knicks if he were to come available. With Gobert, both Charlotte and Atlanta would make sense as a possible destination. A package of Hunter, Clint Capela and Jalen Johnson plus picks could work salary-wise for Gobert, or if the Jazz would rather want the long-term cap space, Danilo Gallinari could replace Capela.
Donovan Mitchell has also been linked as a possible target of Atlanta's. I'd agree with Kirschner that if the Jazz trade one of Mitchell or Gobert, it's likely to be the latter.
Maybe one day a trade between the Jazz and Hawks materializes that sends Gobert east and Hunter west. But for now, it's all speculation and conjecture.
However, if Gobert is dealt, the Jazz will have to come up with a new defensive model, as Kirschner hints at. Hunter would definitely come in handy in that department.
Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen.
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