For Hayward, there will be a tough decision to stay in the West, the competition will be more intense next season, the Jazz may not be able to stand out, and the difficulty of being selected as an All-Star will increase. But if he goes to the East, he has to consider the presence of the Cavaliers and James.
When free agents such as Curry and Griffin promised the team a contract extension on the opening day of the market, Hayward became one of the few remaining and relatively high-quality "fish" in the free agent market. As the Jazz's number one star, Hayward, who was named to his first All-Star for the first time in his career last season, dropped a $16.74 million contract next summer to execute player options and jump out of his contract to become a free agent. And the restoration of free body he also attracted the attention of many teams in the league, in addition to the old club Jazz want to renew the contract to keep Hayward, the East's Celtics and Heat have become the main objects of pursuit.
After Hayward officially jumped out of his contract, he also drew up a schedule of meetings in which the Heat and Celtics and Jazz would all be his next meetings, and his final decision would be produced on all three teams. Hayward, 27, played an explosive year last season, and throughout the regular season, Hayward averaged 21.9 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.5 assists for the team in 34.5 minutes per game, shooting 4.1% from the field and 39.8% from three-point range. Not only did he make the All-Star Game for the first time, but he also led the team to the playoffs and into the second round despite the Jazz's constant injuries.
For Hayward, the Jazz are still one of his considerations, and he knows better than anyone that if he chooses to stay, he will get a higher offer than other teams, and this is where the Jazz's current strength lies. As Hayward's old club, the Jazz can offer Hayward a five-year contract for a total of $180 million, while under the terms of the collective bargaining agreement, other teams can only sign Hayward for a 4-year contract. The Jazz's contract to Hayward can increase by up to 7.5% per year, while the contracts given to Hayward by other teams can only increase by 4.5% per year according to the regulations. So if Hayward chooses to stay with the Jazz, he can maximize his benefits in terms of contract.
Staying at the Jazz maximizes the benefits
So, money is also an aspect of Hayward's consideration. Of course, if he stays with the Jazz, he still needs to recognize the fact that although the team made it to the playoffs last season, they will face a much greater competition next season than last season. Currently in the West, even if the Warriors do not make reinforcements, retaining the original lineup will book a playoff spot. The Rockets made reinforcements this summer, bringing in strong reinforcements to Paul, which has made their backcourt combination enough to match any team in the league, and the reinforcement work of this team is still continuing, and even building a three-man core lineup that people are looking forward to will be just around the corner.
In addition, after the Thunder left Durant last season, Westbrook alone was able to bring the team into the playoffs, and this summer they brought in Paul George, which undoubtedly increased their roster strength. There is also the young Timberwolves, although they did not make the playoffs last season, but at the end of the season, the team gradually showed a strong competitiveness, and now they have joined the All-Star Player Butler, and next season is also one of the teams worth looking forward to. Coupled with the traditional powerhouse Spurs, the Western Conference's playoff spot will be booked at least five next season. In this case, for the Jazz, the competition will become more intense.
Competition in the west is getting bigger and bigger
For Hayward, competition between teams must also be one of his considerations, and the same is true for players. In the West next season, with the addition of George and Butler, the competition between players will become more and more intense, especially in the All-Star vote, and there may be some powerful players who are not selected. If Hayward stays in the Jazz, he will have to consider this factor, although he was selected for the All-Star Game last season, he eventually lost the best team, and the biggest reason why this happened is that the team and the players have little advantage in the competition, so they are compared with other teams and stars. So, even if Hayward eventually decides to renew his contract with the Jazz, there are pros and cons.
In addition to the Jazz, the heat and Celtics are also good in the two Eastern Conference teams currently under consideration, but they are not far from change, and any star who comes to the East has to consider the current Cavaliers and James. Hayward has now completed his meeting with the Heat, and it is reported that the conversation between the two sides is not unusual, but he has not made any promises to this team, and for the pursuit of Hayward, the Heat's biggest advantage is the geographical environment of Miami, which is not only beautiful and suitable for a livable vacation, but most importantly, Florida is also exempt from personal income tax.
The Heat also showed their sincerity
Although both the Heat and the Celtics can currently only offer Hayward for a 4-year contract, if he accepts the Celtic offer, he will not only have to pay personal income tax (but also in jazz), but also in Boston, Massachusetts, and Hayward will have to pay the rich man's tax after he goes. Earlier, Celtic president Danny Angie's son, Tanner, urged Hayward to stay in the Jazz when he ran for Utah, saying that after going to Boston, Hayward would have to pay extremely high taxes, and staying in Utah, Hayward would avoid some unnecessary "troubles". Of course, the reason why Tanner contradicts his father is entirely for his own work.
If Hayward were to measure money, according to Tanner, the Jazz and heat would be his ideal team. But if you measure the competitiveness of the team, the Celtics or the two teams are superior. Last season the Celtics were the first in the East in the regular season, and the playoffs also went straight to the Eastern Conference Finals, in this team now, the lineup already has Thomas Jr., Horford, Bradley and last season's potential newcomer Jaylen Brown, this year's rookie Tatum and many other excellent players, if Hayward can join again, the Greenshirts are equivalent to adding wings, and the competitiveness in the East will be improved by a notch, at least better than Hayward in the West.
Joining Celtic is undoubtedly the best choice in terms of competitiveness
However, when he joins the Eastern Conference team, he must consider the Cavaliers and James. Although so far the Cavaliers still have no substantial adjustment in the lineup, but as long as this team has the big three, the team's competitiveness exists, and after George and Butler went to the West, the threat of the Eastern team to the Cavaliers has been reduced a lot, in this case, even many people are predicting that next season's James and cavaliers, even if they maintain the original lineup, it is still difficult to have opponents in the East. Indeed, even now that Hayward has joined the Celtics, the current Green Army lineup may not necessarily shake the Cavaliers' supremacy in the East. Therefore, for Hayward, the choice of staying in the future is really difficult to decide.