SALT LAKE CITY — Monday could be the biggest night in Utah Jazz history.
After a season in which the team recorded the worst record in the league, the Jazz have a 14% chance of getting the number one overall pick in the NBA Draft Lottery for the first time ever.
Duke's Cooper Flagg is considered a generational player and the consensus number one pick by any measure. A player worth tanking for. That's who the Jazz want to get. But they also face the far greater possibility... nearly 48%... of falling to the fifth pick, which would be a disaster of epic proportions after the seasons that Jazz fans have recently suffered through.
Fifth is the lowest the team can fall.
Salt Lake City announced as host of MLB Home Run Derby X finals:
But say Utah drops just a spot or two, is there an All-Star in the waiting with the number two or three selection?
A good "runner-up" behind Flagg at number 2 is Dylan Harper, a shooting guard from Rutgers. His dad, Ron Harper, played in the NBA for many years, while at number 3 is Ace Bailey, also a very fine player.
But once you move past those three, Jazz fans and the organization won't be very happy. It's so high at the top, and then once you get past No. 3, who knows what kind of player you're going to get.
Ever since the Jazz traded away Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert in 2022, they've been trying to rebuild the team through the draft, and it's been going... OK. The first season, they started out strong, then lost a lot of games and didn't get one of the top lottery picks. They ended up in the middle of the pack, selecting Taylor Hendricks and some other nice players that are still developing.
Last year, same story. The Jazz once again started out strong before fading, and once again failed to get one of the top 4 picks in the draft. Cody Williams was their 2024 selection and Utah's highest draft pick, but yes, he's still developing.
This season, Will Hardy and the Jazz went all in on tanking for the best odds to secure the top pick, winning just 17 games. It was a rough season, but they did it for a reason.
Of course, you never know what happens with players taken in the NBA Draft or how they'll turn out. Number one is a surefire fit, and that's Cooper Flagg. That's why the Jazz have been so terrible the last few years, especially last season.
Will it be worth it? We'll find out on Monday.
