The Golden State Warriors will be impacted by the Kyle Korver trade, a deal sending the sniper to the Utah Jazz, one of the Dubs Western Conference foes.
As reported by Adrian Wojnarowski on Wednesday evening, the Cleveland Cavaliers will be sending sharpshooter Kyle Korver to the Utah Jazz for Alec Burks and two future second-round pick. This deal could have a monumental impact on the Golden State Warriors.
For both sides, this deal seemed like a win-win.
The Cleveland Cavaliers are clearly planning for the future, as they should. At 4-15, the Cavaliers have seemingly already given up on the season. Will the Cavs try to rid themselves of their other three-point specialist, JR Smith, is the near future as well?
For the Jazz, they currently sit at No. 14 in the Western Conference. Albeit a conference with just 15 teams, the Jazz are most certainly still in the playoff picture.
After 21 games, they sit just 9-12. For comparison, the Thunder are fourth in the rankings at 12-7, so the teams are separated by just a handful of wins, a small ground to gain with just a quarter of the season over.
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This trade will help Utah, a team that surprised many with their play in the postseason last year. Averaging 10.1 threes per game, the Jazz rank in the bottom-ten in threes per game, a number that should be concerning for management.
Obviously, it was a total they’d like to see a rise with Korver’s addition. Korver is averaging 1.6 threes per game and shooting over 46% from deep.
Korver’s presence will be beneficial for both Donavon Mitchell and Joe Ingles, two key playmaking threat for Utah. Even if used primarily as a decoy, Korver will have a positive impact on the efficiency of just about every Utah player.
How will this impact Golden State?
For starters, the Dubs have to face off with Utah one more time prior to postseason play, and if the Jazz manage to barely sneak in the postseason, Golden State might see them at least four more times. That Jazz team, if they weren’t already loaded, would be even more lethal.
Additionally, Korver’s presence could help the Jazz rise in the rankings and effect who the Dubs play in the first round.
Korver’s arrival in Utah, even if it’s only for one game, will have an impact on Golden State.