Unlike players such as Durrant, who have publically said they want to stay with their franchises, Deron and 'Melo made nothing to that sort. In fact, Deron dodged the question so many times, much like Melo did.
The Jazz did the right thing. Took away a lingering distraction, set themselves up for the future, and IMO didn't really lose much (Harris will do just fine in the Jazz system). Is having a star point guard better than having an athletic and defensive minded (something we have lacked for a long time) post player? Next year think of a lineup including Favors/Jefferson/AK/Harris... if you can get a more reliable shooter or second option you got a pretty stacked team. Especially since we all know AK will be taking a big discount from his current contract and we'll have a lot more money to sign a free agent or two to pair up with presumably 2 lottery picks.
The Jazz did the right thing. Took away a lingering distraction, set themselves up for the future, and IMO didn't really lose much (Harris will do just fine in the Jazz system). Is having a star point guard better than having an athletic and defensive minded (something we have lacked for a long time) post player? Next year think of a lineup including Favors/Jefferson/AK/Harris... if you can get a more reliable shooter or second option you got a pretty stacked team. Especially since we all know AK will be taking a big discount from his current contract and we'll have a lot more money to sign a free agent or two to pair up with presumably 2 lottery picks.