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Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner and Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson have reportedly turned down contract extension offers from their respective teams this season.
According to NBA insider Marc Stein, the two players have “rejected” attempts to strike long-term contracts and expect the NBA to have them available before the Feb. 9 trade deadline. There is a team with
Stein specifically said he hopes the Jazz get into the season where they can secure Clarkson, but even if they haven’t been able to do so so far, trade him in the middle of the playoff race. Unlikely.
Clarkson has a player option for next season that he can technically exercise, but if he and the Jazz don’t reach an agreement by then, he will test the free agency market. .
Turner’s contract officially ended at the end of the season, and he’s been the subject of intense trade rumors over the past few years, given his uncertain contract status.
It seemed like a foregone conclusion that Turner would eventually be traded, especially after the Pacers missed the playoffs in both the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons, but this season, Indiana has hopes. Things were complicated by the outperforming performance.
With a 22-18 record, the Pacers are tied with the New York Knicks for sixth in the Eastern Conference, and Turner’s play is a big reason.
Turner’s 16.7 points and 7.9 rebounds per game this season are career-highs, while averaging 2.2 blocks, 1.5 assists and 1.4 3-pointers. Turner has a career-best field goal percentage of 54.9% and shots over the arc of 38.0%.
Turner could be on the open market at the end of the season, but with the Pacers in the playoff mix and he being one of the most versatile centers in the NBA, it would take a lot of time to get him in a trade. It will take
Clarkson, 30, is in his ninth season in the NBA and fourth with the Jazz. He was named his NBA Sixth Man of the Year two years before him and has had an even better season as a starter in the 2022-23 season.
After All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers, Clarkson stepped up and posted a career-high 20.6 points per game this season, making him Utah’s second-leading scorer.
Clarkson is also averaging 4.5 assists, 3.9 rebounds and 2.7 3-point attempts per game. His 32.6 minutes per game is also a career-high.
Like the Pacers, the Jazz are playoff contenders and are 20-21 in 10th place in the Western Conference after trading Mitchell and Rudy Gobert.
Clarkson could be a big return for the Jazz at deadline with every team looking for a dynamic scoring guard, but trading him would ruin Utah’s postseason chances. There is likely to be.
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