What Are Jazz Getting In Gabriele Procida?
Feb 7, 2024, 2:08 PM | Updated: Feb 8, 2024, 10:54 am
SALT LAKE CITY – Just 24 hours before the NBA trade deadline the Utah Jazz agreed to trade wing Simone Fontecchio to the Detroit Pistons for a 2024 second-round draft pick, Kevin Knox, and 2022 draft prospect Gabriele Procida.
The second-round pick will come from either the Washington Wizards or the Memphis Grizzlies, whichever team has the worst record at the end of the regular season, and should land somewhere in the low 30s.
Knox is a journeyman who has never quite lived up to his top-ten billing in the 2018 NBA Draft.
Procida, meanwhile, is the biggest mystery in the trade having yet to step foot on an NBA floor.
Related: Jazz Send Simone Fontecchio To Detroit Pistons
Who Is New Jazz Wing Gabriele Procida?
Selected by the Portland Trail Blazers with the 36th pick of the 2022 NBA Draft, Procida was traded to the Pistons on draft night in a package for forward Jerami Grant.
Ahead of the draft, Procida was viewed as a borderline first-round pick who was likely to be stashed in Europe to further develop before jumping to the NBA.
Procida first caught the eyes of NBA scouts due to his unique combination of size and shooting.
Gabriele Procida skyrockets for an alley-oop 🚀pic.twitter.com/6qDQwzGm6w
— BasketNews (@BasketNews_com) February 1, 2024
The wing measured in at just under 6-foot-8 in shoes at the Draft Combine with an impressive 8-foot-10 standing reach and a 35-inch vertical leap.
Procida shot better than 38 percent from the three-point line in two seasons in the Italian Lega A before entering his name into the draft.
The now 21-year-old has struggled to shoot the ball since moving to EuroLeague where he has connected on just 27 percent of his three-point attempts with Berlin in 16 minutes per game over the last two seasons.
Procida remains a long-term prospect who has NBA-caliber measurables but will have to level up his offensive game before making the leap to the United States.
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Ben Anderson is the Utah Jazz insider for KSL Sports and the co-host of Jake and Ben from 10-12p with Jake Scott on 97.5 The KSL Sports Zone. Find Ben on Twitter at @BensHoops or on Instagram @BensHoops.
