ESPN update: Utah Jazz position on the NBA Draft of 2024 and other clubs
In the 2024 NBA Draft, the Utah Jazz have three picks. But when does the team get to select?
At this point, the Utah Jazz are prepared for the 2024 NBA Draft. The team will have plenty of time to prepare for and plan for the next stage of their rebuild when the draft takes place this summer on June 26 and 27. The team will have three draft picks, but we didn’t know where or whether they would have all of them until Sunday, May 12, 2024.
Their best pick was the one they owned, but as part of a trade from a few years earlier, it was subject to a stipulation that said it would go to the Oklahoma City Thunder if it did not land in the Top 10 of the draft lottery. The Jazz almost lost it and were selected with the tenth pick in the draft—two spots lower than many had anticipated.
Even if the pick is later in the draft than anticipated, the Jazz can still use their 10th overall pick to select a quality player. In addition, we now know with certainty where the Jazz’s other two selections will fall. The Jazz will select later with the 29th pick, but they still have a second first-round pick. It’s not typically a hotbed of talent, so the excitement surrounding it as a “first-round pick” isn’t as high as it would be if the Jazz had another Top 10 pick.
In addition, on the second draft day, the Utah Jazz will possess the 32nd pick in the draft, which coincidentally will be the second pick of the second round. It’s not a good location to pick if you’re looking for a game-changer, much like the pick that came in just a few slots before it. However, the New York Knicks’ Jalen Brunson was selected with the 33rd overall choice in the 2018 NBA Draft, so occasionally a player that late can be found that is worth having.
First Round: June 26, 2024, is NBA Draft Day 1.
On June 27, 2024, the second day of the NBA Draft, the 10th and 29th round
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Inside the NBA lottery drawing room for the first time ever for Danny Ainge
The Jazz plummeted to get the tenth pick in the draft lottery, while the Atlanta Hawks unexpectedly took the top pick.
In the NBA, Danny Ainge has worked as an executive, coach, and player for 43 years. He has experienced almost everything the league has to offer and is as familiar with the ins and outs as he is.
But Ainge had never entered the draft lottery drawing room in his more than forty years in the NBA before Sunday.
Ainge was unaffected even though it was one of the last NBA firsts he would ever experience. You could have easily mistaken it for any other Sunday afternoon.
There were several possible outcomes: the Jazz might land in the top four, have a 6% chance of selecting first overall, and even lose the pick if they were to drop out of the top 10.
Did Ainge not seem a little anxious?
“No, not at all,” he responded, casually shaking his head like he’s seen it all. “The security and confidentiality are incredible, but I have no power over anything.”
“Control what you can control is what we always tell our players to do.” This is exactly the same as if I were with my wife on the couch, watching the outcome. There’s no need for concern.
The results of the lottery are all that are shown on ABC. Within the McCormick Place Convention Center, in a smaller, private meeting room, is where the lottery drawing really takes place.
Before people could pass through security, a representative from each of the 14 lottery teams, a small group of NBA employees and security, and twelve members of the media turned in their phones, smart watches, and recorders—all of which were sealed in an envelope.
That’s where the ping pong balls are extracted from the lottery machine that selected the first 14 picks in the draft.
The lottery’s initial four-number combination was drawn by the Atlanta Hawks, who had a mere 3% chance of landing the top choice coming into the day.
