^^ Even Joe himself said in a tweet that it hurts him to be traded as he has call Utah his home for the last 8 years. But no one is untouchable in this league, if the management feels you are a liability then you are going to be traded.
And we could say that he is one of the fan favorites in Utah, and for sure they are going to miss him.
Its the same situation as what happened to Ricky Rubio. When he got the season-ending injury, the Cavaliers traded him immediately and got Rajon Rondo which is right now a perfect fit for the team.
I think that both the Cavaliers and the Jazz are doing it because they are a playoff contender and they want their roster as healthy as possible. Well, no one is safe when it comes to trade. Anybody can be traded. Getting traded really hurts for both the team and the player themselves but its part of the game and they must live with it.
The 3-way trade:
Utah receives:
* Nickeil Alexander-Walker (via Portland)
* Juancho Hernangomez (via San Antonio)
Portland receives:
* Joe Ingles (via Utah)
* Elijah Hughes (via Utah)
* Second-round pick (via Utah)
San Antonio receives:
* Tomas Satoransky (via Portland)
* Second-round pick (via Utah)
^ I think Utah wins this one.
Since Ingles is injured with this trade, I agree that the Jazz won the trade even though the players involved in this trade aren't that popular aside from Ingles.
Now that McCollum got traded to New Orleans, I think its safe to say that the Trail Blazers are in a rebuilding phase isn't it?? Maybe next year we might see Lillard leaving the team too. There are rumors already during last off-season regarding this but he chose to stay with the team.
