Even though there is currently no basketball, and if I'm being honest, I do not think it is coming back this year, I do have a few stories about basketball for you all the next couple of days. The one I want to focus on today is the rumors, which I fully believe, that are flying around right now about the fractured relationship between Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell.

So, all of the basketball world, and most of the rest of the world for that matter, can pinpoint the Gobert incident as the starting point of shutting down sports across America. Gobert was infected, he acted nonchalant, he infected his teammate and the NBA was suspended immediately. They actually suspended it right after he was confirmed to have COVID-19 that night. For the rest of time, Gobert's name will be infamous with who was the catalyst for major pro sports leagues to shut everything down. That is a fact. And the way he treated the situation at first was wrong on every single level. To be on the court for warm ups was wrong, to touch all the microphones during his interview was wrong, to toy and mess around with teammates was wrong. The fact that he went out and thought it was okay to conduct himself in the manner he did was foolish, arrogant and, quite frankly, life threatening. With all that being said, he has tried to make up for his mistakes. He has donated a good amount of money to research. He has, I believe, let his blood get tested. He has adhered to all the guidelines since his infection. He has gone on in interviews and apologized for his actions and has said he is trying to reignite his relationship with his teammates, specifically Mitchell. But, if I were Mitchell, I would be very wary of him. I fully understand why he is pissed off, why he doesn't, or is hesitant, to try and repair their relationship. It all makes sense from Mitchell's stand point. Also, he is much more important to the Jazz franchise than Gobert is, full stop.

Which leads me to my point today. With all these rumors swirling, talk of trading Gobert, or Mitchell for that matter, but more so Gobert, have heated up big time. I get it, and it makes sense. The only real problem is the contract stuff. Gobert makes a ton of money, and he isn't a free agent until 2022. So the team that takes him on, if he gets traded, has to pay him a lot, and may not get him back.

With that being said, I have been racking my brain thinking of a team where Gobert would fit. Before I fully get into it, I am not going to match the money or contract or anything like that. I am just going to go off what I think fits, and where I think it would be best for him to repair his reputation. Therein lies another problem with this. Gobert may not be wanted by a good amount of teams. His actions were rough, and players and coaches and GM's everywhere saw that. That will forever be on their minds. So taking all of that in account I thought of two teams that would fit, that can compete and where he would make sense and the Jazz could get a solid return.

The first team is Boston. In Boston they don't care if you murdered multiple people, they will still wear your jersey and say you are innocent if you bring them titles. He could go there, play his suffocating rim protecting defense and help the Celtics become instant title contenders. The only thing they are really missing is a true rim protector. They don't have a guy that can do that at as high a level right now, and they wouldn't have to give up much of their super young, super talented wing guys. Mitchell is already a great wing player, so Tatum and Jaylen Brown, they could stay in Boston. In actuality I feel like the Celtics wouldn't have to give up much. They would have to part with picks for sure, and of they had to send a few players over there, they could send a guy like Semi Ojeleye or Robert Williams, or a return of Gordon Hayward to Utah. That is who actually makes the most sense to me. Boston could give Utah Hayward because the contracts are similar in money and time, and they would have to send picks, which I think they would do quick to get a guy like Gobert. And if he instantly turns them into a contender, the fans and players and coaches in Boston would easily forget about what he did.

As for the other team, the one I think makes almost too much sense, is the San Antonio Spurs. San Antonio is quiet, they have their own culture and they protect their players. People didn't blame San Antonio when Kawhi wanted out, they blamed Kawhi's uncle. They have helped a guy like Rudy Gay restore his career. It's not like he had a rough career, he was always looked at as a guy teams were better without. That is not the case now. Nobody ever talks about Tony Parker cheating on his wife while in the league. I fully believe that San Antonio protected him, kept him out of the news and media buildings and made sure he never brought it up. San Antonio is like the New England Patriots of the NBA. If you can't restore yourself there, that means you are done. I feel like Gobert could land there and be totally out of the news, which would be the absolute best thing for him. They would have to trade some young assets, maybe a guy like Bynn Forbes or Dejounte Murray or Lonnie Walker. But I feel like the Spurs would be okay with letting one or 2 of those guys go to clear up playing time for whoever they keep. If they give up Forbes and Walker, that leaves Murray to run point. If they have to give up Murray. Forbes can return to a bench role and Walker can finally get his shine. They would make it work. And before I hear the backlash of having too many big contract guys, LMA, DeMar DeRozan and Gobert, they wouldn't be on the books for too long. LMA has a few years left, but DeRozan is a free agent this off season and Gobert would be off the books the next year. It also works for me because Greg Poppovich is not going to coach much longer. He only has a few seasons left, and getting a front court duo of Gobert and LMA could work. They are both big. LMA can score and rebound with some of the better bigs in the league. Gobert is the rim protector and rim runner that could work with Murray or Walker, whichever one they keep. The team is also filled with vets that could help take the heat off Gobert. It would also put this team back in the playoff picture. They could slow down some other teams that have bigger guys that crush them now.

Time will tell with this, but if I were the Jazz, and I wanted to rid myself of this whole thing, these are the 2 teams I would call first to test the waters. We will see. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing, the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast, and the greatest basketball writer on the internet.

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