NBA: Jazz Boost Chances With Clarkson Trade, Cavs Gamble On Exum

KEY POINTS

Jordan Clarkson provides the Utah Jazz added scoring punch
The Cavs may end up waiving Exum if he fails to produce
The Cavs continue their youth movement with two future second round picks

Probably aware that they need more firepower from someone who can also play the point, the Utah Jazz made the first official NBA trade of the season when they acquired Jordan Clarkson from the Cleveland Cavaliers.

In return, the rebuilding Cavs got Dante Exum and a couple of future second-round picks (2022 and 2023), Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN learned from league sources. The NBA trade is an ice breaker of sorts, the first since the Russell Westbrook for Chris Paul deal.

Utah will also send two future second round picks to Cleveland in the trade, sources tell ESPN. https://t.co/mQBTD8h26k
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) December 24, 2019

Clarkson is expected to provide the Jazz with more scoring versatility. This season, the Filipino-American guard has averaged 14.2 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 2.4 assists in 29 games according to Basketball-Reference. The 27-year-old owns career averages of 14.7 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 2.7 assists.

The 6-foot-4 guard is in the final year of his deal. He is due to make $13.4 million this 2019-20 NBA season before becoming an unrestricted free agent this coming summer. If Clarkson blends into the system of head coach Quin Snyder, there is a chance he could remain in Utah moving forward. That is unless some other team pitches something better. Utah is currently at 6th spot in the Western Conference standings with an 18-11 card.

For the Cavs, the trade hardly comes as a surprise. The 2016 NBA champions are rebuilding with a focus on youth. Exum, once considered a promising guard, is only 24 but injuries have prevented the 5th overall pick of the 2014 NBA Draft.

The Australian cager is in the second year of his three-year deal and will earn $9.1 million this NBA season. He is due to the same amount in 2020-21 before becoming an unrestricted free agent in 2021.

So far this season, the 6-foot-5 guard has averaged 2.2 points, 1.1 rebounds and 0.6 assists in 11 games. In his career, Exum has averaged 5.7 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 2.2 assists. From the numbers alone, the Cavs may have been more interested in the future second-round picks than Exum. If he fails to improve his numbers, he could end up getting waived or traded once more.