SALT LAKE CITY, UT - OCTOBER 22: Grayson Allen #24 of the Utah Jazz looks to pass the ball in the second half of a NBA game against the Memphis Grizzlies at Vivint Smart Home Arena on October 22, 2018 in Salt Lake City, Utah. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Gene Sweeney Jr./Getty Images)
The Utah Jazz could use Grayson Allen again but not at the cost being pitched
The Utah Jazz need a player like Grayson Allen but not for the price he’s being pitched for.
The Utah Jazz needs some help on the premier. The team is deep at the guard spots, but they don’t have any really high-top-end type talent. Nor is the guard pool really all that diverse in terms of talent. Most of the guys are copies of one another. Talen Horton-Tucker and Kris Dunn do about the same things, as do Collin Sexton and Jordan Clarkson.
Horton-Tucker and Dunn are both non-shooters who make up for their lack of offense in other ways, while Clarkson and Sexton are both guys who like to attack at mid-range or in the paint. Keyonte George and Ochai Agbaji are both relative unknowns in this scenario.
George possibly looks like a young Russell Westbrook with a better jumper and Agbaji is seen as a possible young Kris Middleton. Neither has proven a lick yet, so it’s unknown if either young player will turn into anything worth remembering.
The Jazz lack any real three-point threats at the guard positions, at least ones that also play good defense. This is where Grayson Allen comes into the conversation. He’s still fairly young, only about to turn 28, and he fits alongside the needs of the Jazz. Plus, he was originally drafted by the Jazz and erroneously traded away not long after for Mike Conley. Conley was a good get for the Jazz, but Utah should’ve kept Allen away from that trade.
For the right price, he’s exactly the type of starter at shooting guard the team needs, but the problem is, the price people keep asking for him is a bit outlandish. The NBA media keeps suggesting trades for Allen that include the likes of Collin Sexton or John Collins, and neither player should be dealt for Allen. Or maybe a all.
Allen is someone the Jazz could really use, and if the team does trade for someone like Tyler Herro, then Allen becomes all the more necessary, as does Dunn. The team needs bruisers on the perimeter, something they have in Dunn, but would need as well in Allen should the team get Herro.
What makes Allen really unique as a player is that he has the dribbling and passing to be able to play the point guard position, and if the team lands Herro or wants to role with Clarkson as the starting two-guard, Allen would be able to fit in seamlessly alongside either player.
Allen may be a goon, but like with hard-nosed defenders of the past like Dennis Rodman and Bruce Bowne, sometimes you need someone to get a bit dirty if you’re going to get a win.
