Derrick Favors, Jazz Reportedly Agree to 3-Year, $27M Contract

Former New Orleans Pelicans forward/center Derrick Favors has agreed to a three-year, $27 million contract with the Utah Jazz, per The Athletic's Tony Jones on Friday.

The 29-year-old averaged 9.0 points on 61.7 percent shooting, 9.8 rebounds and 0.9 blocks in 24.4 minutes per game for the Pels during the 2019-20 season. His rebounding mark is a career high.

At his best, Favors is an efficient scorer and nightly double-double threat. He notably dropped a 20-point, 20-rebound double-double against the Los Angeles Clippers last November.

Favors can also shine on the defensive end. Per ESPN.com, the former Georgia Tech star ranked 12th among 72 qualified centers in defensive plus-minus last season.

The former Georgia Tech star doesn't spread the floor offensively, per his Basketball Reference shot chart, as he largely lives around the 10-foot area by the basket. But even in the NBA's current small-ball era, Favors' impact offensively did not go unnoticed. Per Basketball Reference, the Pels had a 114.3 offensive rating with him on the floor compared to 110.0 off it.

However, Favors is now a member of the Jazz, which marks the fourth NBA team for the No. 3 overall pick in the 2010 draft. He played 56 games for the Nets in 2010-11 before being traded in a blockbuster deal to the Jazz as part of a package that sent three-time All-Star point guard Deron Williams the other way.

Favors played in Utah through 2018-19, averaging 12.1 points and 7.4 boards per game for the Jazz during his nine-year tenure. The Jazz dealt him to the Pels in July 2019.

Utah sported a tough defense in the four years that center Rudy Gobert and Favors started together down low.

The Jazz had the No. 7 defensive rating in the NBA in 2015-16 before moving to No. 3 in 2016-17 and No. 2 in 2017-18 and 2018-19. Utah also ended its 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons in the Western Conference Semifinals, marking its best postseason result since 2010.

If Favors starts, then he should be a nightly double-double threat for the Jazz once again as Utah looks to make a deeper playoff run following a first-round loss to the Denver Nuggets in 2020.