Two Contrasting Directions

With the rumors surrounding the NBA about the Utah Jazz splitting up its two core pieces following a third first-round exit in four seasons, Danny Ainge decided to pull the trigger. As the new president of basketball operations with the Timberwolves, Tim Connelly chose to put his new team in contention but instead sacrificed the franchise's entire future. Minnesota sent Malik Beasley, Patrick Beverley, Walker Kessler, Leandro Bolmaro, Jarred Vanderbilt, and four first-round picks in exchange for the three-time Defensive Player of the Year, Rudy Gobert. When an organization gives up many solid role players along with four first-round picks, the team is going for a championship with the haul it got in exchange for nine assets. It has been a week since the trade was announced, and now it is time to see how this deal looks on both sides heading into next season.

This trade will not help them win the championship next season or even in the foreseeable future. There is no real answer to the point guard situation, and with some of its more essential role players on the way out, the depth of the Timberwolves has to be solved before the season begins. Last year, Minnesota squeaked into the postseason as the seven-seed and made some noise by taking the Grizzlies to six hard-fought contests.

C/O: The Associated Press

After seeing Anthony Edwards in the playoffs and the season that Karl-Anthony Towns had, the league knew that Minnesota would only continue to elevate itself up the Western Conference standings. While the Timberwolves were last out of all the teams in the postseason for points allowed in the paint per game and the bottom six in second-chance points allowed in the regular season, acquiring a player that plays the same position as one of your core pieces for the massive price the organization had to make for it to happen simply does not make much sense.

Doing away with a double-digit scorer, along with arguably one of the best perimeter defenders in the entire league, for a player that was part of the reason for Utah's early departure in the postseason raises questions about the direction of Minnesota. Dejounte Murray was on the trading block, but the Wolves opted to go after a player who does not fit its system in the slightest and plays the same position as their three-time All-Star. Gobert may be a sensational player inside the paint of the defensive end, but his offense and perimeter defense are extremely limiting when looking at what the modern NBA center looks like.

Last season, Minnesota played an aggressive defense that focused on turning the opposition over, but with two of its most elite defensive guards gone, the Wolves may need to reinvent how they scheme up their defense with Gobert on the roster. On the surface, adding a three-time Defensive Player of the Year should take this defense to the next level, but that is if it works. Towns lacked the quickness on the perimeter as the five, but now with Gobert, there is no way the former No. 1 overall pick will be able to hold his own against the individuals that play the four in today's day and age. At 30 years old, Gobert may not be a reliant rim protector for much longer.

With its most essential player at the age of 20, adding an aging center does not make much sense when trying to build a championship contender for years to come. There is no doubt that Edwards will throw many lobs to Gobert throughout the season, but with the lack of perimeter defense, and opponents playing a five-out offense, Minnesota will have a tough time competing in a competitive Western Conference. The team is looking to build on the momentum of last season's successes, but analyzing the players it lost with the one asset it added, Minnesota is going in the opposite direction of Utah.

Ainge flipped Royce O'Neale for a first-round pick with the Brooklyn Nets just a few days later and is off to an electric start during his first offseason with the Utah Jazz. Utah is slowly building its team around Donovan Mitchell and the intelligence of new head coach Will Hardy. Gobert has his flaws and got exposed by the Dallas Mavericks' small-ball lineup in the first round, and now the Jazz are moving to a quicker and more athletic smaller lineup that can score with the best of them in the transition game.

Patrick Beverley and Jarred Vanderbilt cleaned up some of the perimeter woes it had last season. Mitchell and Mike Conley Jr. are not the greatest defenders given their effort and age, but adding more pieces that possess more quality on that end is very positive. The former Kansas star, Udoka Azubuike, could see more time in the center position with Gobert now gone, but it is going to take quite a while for this Utah team to assemble a squad that can qualify for the postseason at a consistent rate. Point guard is a big question mark, as well as its interior offense, but with all of these assets, Ainge is going to take advantage of them to try to elevate this franchise back to where it was in the 1990s.

C/O: Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune

Even before the deal, Utah looks to have found a coach ready and motivated to change the culture of a team that has been running in circles season after season. Former Boston Celtics assistant Will Hardy spoke on the team's future and his aspirations going forward, stating, "A lot of it is going to be tailoring it to the players, especially on the offensive end...Defensively, there’s always things that you want to believe in. But I wouldn’t be doing my job if I wasn’t trying to tailor what we do to our roster...Right now, it’s about relationships. It was really important to me and my family to get out here as quickly as possible and start to build those relationships, not just with our players, but with our staff...For me to be an effective leader, I have to have that personal capital built up with everybody."

If Hardy can create a group that will buy into his system and what the front office will do, Utah will be making a massive step in the right direction. At the young age of 34, Ainge raved about Hardy's ability to create relationships with his players. And with some of the drama experienced with the Jazz during the last few seasons off the court, Hardy's talent will come of use. Not only did Ainge and general manager Justin Zanik receive nine assets for a 30-year-old center, but the organization also signed a coach that could be one of the best in the league in just a few short years. In the current state Utah is in right now, it is not a contender, but with the core pieces beginning to take shape and the future assets currently in place, the Jazz are looking better and better by the minute.