What the Jazz got out of the three-team trade that shipped out Enis Kanter was the Thunder’s first-round 2017 pick (which has protections), Grant Jerrett, and the draft rights to Tibor Pleiss.
They also got Kendrick Perkins, but the plan was always to buy him out.
A number of teams expressed interest, but it’s down to a couple potential Eastern Conference contenders, reports David Aldridge of TNT and NBA.com.
Heaing Bulls and Cavs are clear frontrunners for Kendrick Perkins when buyout with Jazz is finalized.
— David Aldridge (@davidaldridgedc) February 20, 2015
Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports added this:
That leaves out the Clippers, who certainly have interest and their coach Doc Rivers has a relationship with Perkins. But if Perkins is looking for a ring he’s more likely to get to the Finals and get a chance at it in the East. The Clippers will struggle to get out of the West, especially if they slide far down the standings with Blake Griffin out.
Perkins could back up Timofey Mozgov in Cleveland or Joakim Noah in Chicago. Perkins is a shadow of the 2008 Perkins who helped Boston win a ring, but neither the Bulls nor Cavaliers would ask much of him.
