Report: Jazz Trade Rudy Gobert to Timberwolves

The long-anticipated move.

The Utah Jazz are trading star center Rudy Gobert to the Minnesota Timberwolves, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. 

In what many Jazz fans interpreted as an internal power struggle between two All-Star players, it would seem that Donovan Mitchell has emerged victorious over Gobert. If the Jazz are intent on breaking out of the rut they’ve been in for the past few seasons, trading Gobert instead of Mitchell was always going to be the right move. 

At this stage, we don’t yet know what compensation Utah gleaned in exchange for Gobert but considering his resume, it figures to be a relative king’s ransom. 

Gobert leaves Utah as a three-time All-Star, a three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year, and a six-consecutive NBA All-Defensive First-Teamer. He’s been a dyed-in-the-wool Jazz-man and fans are going to miss him. 

The product on the court could miss Gobert’s presence, too, as the Jazz just traded away the only modicum of a defensive menace the team had. Now it’s up to new head coach Will Hardy to figure out how to get Mitchell to play some defense and fill the gaping hole in the middle of the court that Gobert’s departure will surely create. 

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The Gobert trade signals that, indeed, there’s a new sheriff in Salt Lake City and his name is Danny Ainge. While some worry that the Gobert trade might signal a full-blown rebuild, the likelihood of Mitchell also getting dealt away is very small. 

Regardless, the next era of Jazz basketball will be new. Gobert was a team maven and one of the best players to ever don the Utah jersey. 

Happy trails to the big guy. 

The Gobert trade comes on the heels of a previous move with Royce O’Neale getting dealt to the Brooklyn Nets. Buckle up, because Ainge and company figure to be quite busy this summer. 

We will update this article when we learn of the compensation Utah got back for Gobert. 

Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen.