Jazz Drop To 23rd Pick After NBA Draft Tiebreakers Decided
Aug 17, 2020, 12:49 PM | Updated: 12:50 pm
NBA Draft 2019 (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
(Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – The Utah Jazz will have the 23rd pick in the upcoming 2020 NBA Draft. The Jazz were awarded the 23rd pick after losing tiebreakers against the Houston Rockets and Oklahoma City Thunder. The league holds a drawing to decide ties in the NBA draft.
The Jazz could have selected with the 21st pick had they won the tiebreaker. Houston will pick 21st while the Thunder won the 22nd pick.
Your full NBA draft order. The @UtahJazz will pick 23rd on a October 16. #TakeNote pic.twitter.com/9QzcYnX7dW
— Ben Anderson (@BensHoops) August 17, 2020
The Jazz could have had the 20th pick in the draft had they lost their seeding game with the San Antonio Spurs but won 118-112.
The Jazz will have a wide variety of draft options in October. With a starting lineup set, but serious questions marks through their bench, the team can truly target the best player available wherever they end up selecting.
With Mike Conley entering the final year of his contract with the Jazz, the team could look to draft a point guard with hopes he could replace the veteran when his contract expires. However, the Jazz could prefer to use Donovan Mitchell as their point guard of the future, opening room for another shooting guard in the draft.
The latest NBA mock draft from @DraftExpress has the Warriors doubling down on small ball 👀
Full draft (E+): https://t.co/PYvMMmPw6E pic.twitter.com/OZqjnlcII9
— ESPN (@espn) April 9, 2020
Likewise, Joe Ingles is beginning his athletic decline, while Royce O’Neale still has a ways to go to develop offensively. The Jazz could use their pick to solidify their wing rotation in the second unit.
Finally, Rudy Gobert is on the verge of a supermax contract extension in the summer of 2021. If the Jazz aren’t comfortable footing the bill, they could look to draft Gobert’s replacement this year.
The Jazz owe their 2020 second-round pick to the Golden State Warriors.
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