Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

According to Marc Stein and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com, the Los Angeles Clippers are reportedly discussing a trade that would send backup point guard Eric Bledsoe to the Utah Jazz for power forward Paul Milsap.

Sources with knowledge of the situation told ESPN.com late Saturday that there is a level of mutual interest between the Clippers and Utah Jazz in exploring a deal that would feature Bledsoe as the headliner in a trade package for Jazz forward Paul Millsap.

Although two sources with knowledge of the Clippers’ thinking insisted during All-Star Weekend that Bledsoe would not be moved in coming days and strongly predicted that L.A. would stand pat, two other sources indicated that the Clippers and Jazz will at least discuss the feasibility of a trade headlined by Bledsoe and Millsap before the deadline.

Bledsoe is averaging 9.6 points, 3.1 rebounds and 3.3 assists a game for Los Angeles, while Milsap is averaging 15.1 points and 7.4 rebounds out in Utah.

More pieces would need to be added to make this trade happen, as a straight-up swap wouldn’t work from a financial standpoint (Clippers would be over luxury tax threshold).

If this potential deal has any legs behind it, both sides should be eager to make this trade come into fruition before the February 21st deadline.

It works out for everyone involved.

The Utah Jazz need a legit starting point guard like diabetics need insulin. A three-man combination of Mo Williams, Jamaal Tinsley and Earl Watson just won’t cut it anymore. Eric is a huge upgrade over all three of them, so it’s safe to assume that he would jump right in the line of fire and become the new starter at the point right off the bat.

With the return of Chauncey Billups, Bledsoe’s minutes will slowly start to decrease more and more as the playoffs approach. At least in Utah, he could thrive in an offense that will certainly give him more playing time than he’s getting as a Clipper.

Paul Milsap is expendable to Utah. The Jazz have huge depth in their frontcourt (Al Jefferson, Enes Kanter, Derrick Favors), so they can afford to part ways with at least one of them and not lose any of their strength down low.

It should also be noted that Milsap will become an unrestricted free-agent in July, so he will be free to sign with whichever team he chooses this summer. The Clippers would more than likely need some sort of insurance that he plans to re-sign with the team, rather than trading away a quality asset in Bledsoe for a player who has no intention of sticking around long-term.

The Clippers have little depth off the bench at the power forward position (Lamar Odom), so Milsap can fill a need for Los Angeles by spotting Blake Griffin in the second-unit. Paul is a much more aggressive player on offense than Odom. He can also rebound, box out and play strong defense in the paint. He’s come off the bench before in his career, so that shouldn’t be an issue.

As with all trade rumors, it’s not a given that this deal will in fact happen, but considering the value it brings to both the Clippers and Jazz, I don’t see why it shouldn’t.

Chris Walder is the Editor of Sir Charles in Charge. You may follow him on Twitter at @WalderSports

Mandatory Credit: Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports

One of the biggest strengths of the Utah Jazz is their insane depth in the frontcourt. Al Jefferson, Derrick Favors, Paul Milsap and Enes Kanter are all worthy of being starters on this team, as well as many other rosters around the league.

There isn’t enough ball and playing time for all of those bigs to be effective at the moment. The smart move would be to part ways with one of the four in order to improve depth at other positions.

The name being tossed around as a possible candidate to be moved before the February 21st trade deadline is Al Jefferson.

In fact, the San Antonio Spurs are expressing heavy interest in acquiring his services, as Chris Sheridan recently acknowledged in a recent report for SheridanHoops.com.

 Here is the latest they are telling me: The San Antonio Spurs are the front-runners to land Al Jefferson in a trade with the Utah Jazz – and they are frontrunners like Secretariat was in the 1973 Belmont Stakes.

Jefferson and the Spurs seem like a match made in basketball heaven.

Through 49 games, Al is averaging 17.1 points on 49% shooting from the field, as well as 9.6 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.1 blocks a game.

The Tim Duncan (36) era in San Antonio (unfortunately) won’t last forever, The Spurs need to start looking towards the future, even though the present isn’t at all negative (39-11. first in Western Conference).

A trade between the Spurs and Jazz works perfectly for both parties involved. San Antonio could use a guy like Jefferson to be the focal point of the frontcourt once Duncan walks off into the sunset, and Utah would not only clear up some more minutes for guys like Favors and Kanter, but they could snag some pretty sweet pieces from a fairly deep Spurs roster as well.

Utah is very thin in their backcourt with Mo Williams constantly injured and veterans like Jamaal Tinsley needing to play more minutes as a result. On the other hand, the Spurs have a couple of quality point guards in Nando De Colo and Patty Mills just wasting away on their bench that, with the opportunity to play, could certainly thrive on another team.

I’m well aware that a couple of backup point guards would not be enough to sway Utah to part with a player the caliber of Al Jefferson, but it’s certainly a start.

The Spurs main trio of Duncan/Tony Parker/Manu Ginobili aren’t going anywhere, so don’t even bother throwing their names in the fire.

With the long-term potential Kawhi Leonard presents at the small forward position, I doubt San Antonio would willingly part with him either.

That just leaves guys like Tiago Splitter, Stephen Jackson (expiring contract), Danny Green, Dejuan Blair and Matt Bonner (owed just $1 million) as potential names to fill in any gapping holes in a possible trade. A first-round draft pick would (more than likely) need to be included to top things off.

Would any combination of those players, as well as a point guard in De Colo/Mills, be enough to make the Jazz pull the trigger? (Trevor Zickgraf of Project Spurs recently came up with a number of packages San Antonio could offer that would work under the salary cap).

Quality big men who average 17 points and nine rebounds a game aren’t exactly growing on trees these days. Al Jefferson will become an unrestricted free-agent this summer, so there is a strong possibility that he will walk and leave the Jazz with absolutely nothing.

Utah currently sit seventh in the Western Conference with a record of 28-22. While their success through the first three months of the season deserves to be applauded, no one in their right mind would ever confuse them for a team worthy of challenging the likes of the Oklahoma City Thunder, or even the San Antonio Spurs themselves on the road to the NBA Finals.

I can’t argue with those who believe that the Spurs should stand put with what they have. They currently own the best record in the entire league, so it’s not like they’re in a rush to make any serious moves. Although, regular season success doesn’t always carry over into the postseason, and the Spurs should know that better than anyone else, at least in recent memory. Jefferson could be that weapon San Antonio needs to reach the NBA Finals once again.

Al Jefferson would fit in seamlessly with the Spurs system. He’s a prototypical big man who loves playing back to the basket, which would take more pressure off of the shoulders of Tim Duncan to produce in the paint. Splitter is too inconsistent to trust on offense just yet, so what Jefferson could provide in that department would be a tremendous asset to have.

It should be noted though just how awful Al is on defense. the Jazz give up 110.53 points per 100 possessions while Jefferson is on the floor. When he is off the floor, their defensive efficiency drops to 101.21 points per 100 possessions allowed. That essentially means that Utah’s defense gets nearly 10 points per 100 possessions better when Jefferson is not playing.

Dealing a guy like Splitter in a deal for Jefferson would be swapping strong defense for offensive production, but I’m sure a renowned head coach like Gregg Popovich could help cover up any flaws in Al’s game.

Whether it be expiring contracts like Stephen Jackson, a backup center to Enes Kanter in Tiago Splitter or a point guard for the future in Mills/De Colo, the San Antonio Spurs present the Utah Jazz with many appealing pieces for Al Jefferson.

Utah should just get what they can while they can, because that February 21st deadline is creeping closer and closer.

Chris Walder is the Editor of Sir Charles in Charge. You may follow him on Twitter at @WalderSports