Two Utah Jazz Stars Expected to Remain With The Team Beyond The Deadline

The Utah Jazz have been one of the worst teams in the NBA for a number of years now, with the team still looking to rebuild following the departure of Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell. They do have some very solid pieces for the future including Lauri Markkanen, Walker Kessler, Keyonte George and Ace Bailey, giving fans plenty of optimism moving forward.

While the future is bright, the team is still 14-25 this season, and given their struggles, many have expected them to be busy ahead of the trade deadline. The expectation is that veterans and valuable pieces like Jusuf Nurkic, Markkanen and Kessler could be on the way out the door, but the latest report from Brett Siegel contradicts that idea.

According to Siegel, both Markkanen and Kessler are expected to remain in Utah beyond the trade deadline, and while they're both solid pieces, the belief is that their value would mostly come on the trade market. For now though, their front office has shown little desire to trade either player, even if a deal would get them immense value of future pieces and assets in return if they became serious about selling either player.

Ultimately, the Jazz need to make up their mind about whether they are rebuilding or if they think this is a core that can lead them to success, and if it's the former they go with, it's more likely than not that they should part ways with one or both Kessler and Markkanen.