Just when you thought you’d heard the last of the Gordon Hayward free agency extravaganza, there might be a whole other level we’ve yet to even explore. If all of Hayward’s indecisiveness leading up to his announcement that he will indeed sign with the Celtics wasn’t enough, it now appears both teams might pursue a more circuitous route to send the All-Star forward to Boston.
Hayward has already agreed in principle to a maximum four-year, $128 million deal with the Celtics. The only problem is that Boston doesn’t have sufficient cap space to officially do so. That’s why they waived Kelly Olynyk and have reportedly been aggressively exploring trade scenarios for Avery Bradley, Marcus Smart, and Jae Crowder.
But if both teams are amenable to terms, the Jazz could alternately arrange a sign-and-trade that would allow them to ink Hayward to the max deal he seeks and get trade pieces back in exchange, which would be a win-win for all parties involved. Here’s more from Tony Jones and Aaron Falk of The Salt Lake Tribune:
The Jazz would almost certainly have to include additional assets to entice the Celtics to make a deal, rather than finding other partners in their quest to shed contracts.
But a deal would be a major boon for Utah, as it watches its star player exit. Crowder, Bradley or Smart could help fill in for some of Hayward’s lost production on the wing.
A deal would also greatly help the Jazz’s salary cap situation.
…because teams are allowed to go over the cap to sign their own players, a sign-and-trade with Boston would allow the Jazz to bring back up to about $30 million in contracts and trade exceptions.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Ramona Shelburne confirmed that discussions have taken place about a possible sign-and-trade that could send Jae Crowder west to Utah.
The Jazz and Celtics discussed on Wednesday the possibility of including Crowder in a sign-and-trade agreement for Hayward, league sources said, which would be cap beneficial for Boston.
The catch, of course, is that Hayward would have to agree to it. But one final act of kindness that benefits his former team might be just the parting gift that could relieve some of the bitterness of his departure among Jazz fans and the organization itself.
