Jazz To Do Everything Possible To Bring Back Conley

The Jazz are in a tough position with their point guard situation, writes Tony Jones of The Athletic. Mike Conley is coming off his first ever All-Star season, officially breaking his stretch as this generation’s best player without an All-Star appearance, and because of the team’s salary situation, it’s unlikely they’ll be able to replace him in the starting lineup should he walk in free agency.

2021/22 is the official start of Donovan Mitchell‘s five-year maximum extension, which will pay him approximately $28.1MM next season. Rudy Gobert is also starting a five-year, $205MM contract extension, and Bojan Bogdanovic, Royce O’Neale, and Derrick Favors are all under long-term deals worth $8MM annually or more. Joe Ingles is also on a one-year extension that leaves the team with a $13MM cap hit.

All of those factors combine to make it almost impossible for the team to replace the unrestricted Conley with an equivalent player on the open market if he should accept a deal with another team.

To make things more complicated, the 33-year-old has been hampered by injuries during his time in Utah, playing just 98 of the team’s 144 regular season games, and 11 of the team’s 18 playoff games. Concerns about Conley’s durability are well-founded, and may come into play on the open market, but the Jazz can’t afford to let such questions deter them.

According to Jones’ sources, the Jazz are without question determined to bring Conley back and will make “every attempt” to re-sign him.

One thing the Jazz may have to consider, writes Jones, is bringing in another point guard if and when Conley misses time with injury. Preserving Conley for the playoffs will be paramount as the team continues to seek answers in their quest to go from regular season powerhouse to true playoff contender.

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