A recent Sports Illustrated report speculates that the Utah Jazz may have been the team to extend a first-round draft promise to Maryland’s Kevin Huerter.
As the 2018 NBA Draft draws ever nearer, the intrigue of which prospect will end up in a Utah Jazz uniform builds more and more each day. The Jazz have held a series of promising pre-draft workouts and appear poised to add an impact player in the first round due to the many options that still figure to be available when they select at No. 21 overall.
One prospect that the Jazz have most certainly had their eyes on is Maryland’s Kevin Huerter. The Jazz had Huerter scheduled for a pre-draft workout, but unfortunately he later went on to cancel his appearance. The reasoning for doing so was that he wanted to head back home to discuss with his parents the decision of whether to return to school for another year or officially declare for the NBA Draft.
Related Story: Utah Jazz: Kevin Huerter skips workout, but remains enticing at No. 21
Since his workout with the Jazz came so close to the deadline for making that decision, it was perfectly understandable that he would use the remaining time he had left to seek trusted counsel before making a final choice. Ultimately, Huerter opted to forego a return to Maryland and declared for the NBA Draft, leaving him as an intriguing 2018 prospect for the Utah Jazz and several other teams.
According to multiple reports, including from Sports Illustrated’s Jeremy Woo, one of the motivating factors for Huerter’s decision to stay in the draft was that he received a promise from a team drafting in the first round that they would select him.
Word around the league tonight is that Maryland’s Kevin Huerter has obtained a promise from a team drafting in the first round. Certainly a helpful factor in his decision process.
— Jeremy Woo (@JeremyWoo) May 31, 2018
If true, that certainly would be quite the motivator to remain in the draft. As Huerter so succinctly put it, “This year is guaranteed. Next year is not.”
The Jazz have yet to reschedule a workout with Kevin Huerter, though it stands to reason that they’d like to see the promising prospect in action prior to the draft. However, an interesting rumor that has surfaced suggests that perhaps the Jazz have already seen enough.
In Sports Illustrated’s latest mock draft, Jeremy Woo suggests the belief that the Utah Jazz were the team that extended a promise to the Maryland product. Here’s what he had to say on the matter–
"As we reported last week, the belief around the league is that Huerter obtained the first-round promise he was seeking at the combine before opting to remain in the draft. Based on our conversations with teams, signs point to Utah having offered the guarantee. It remains highly possible Huerter is drafted among the first 20 picks, but this spot appears to be his floor."
New, fully updated mock draft is live: examining the Kings’ decision at No. 2, the latest on Michael Porter, the ripple effect if Luka Doncic slips, and the latest first-round intel https://t.co/wo5fgHVNRp
— Jeremy Woo (@JeremyWoo) June 5, 2018
Huerter is certainly an exciting prospect that seems as if he would fit with the Jazz both on the court and in the locker room. There’s a lot to like about his game and I would be excited to see him don a Utah uniform next season. However, this report still seems a bit questionable to me.
The Utah Jazz are reputed as a team that never extends promises to players, so to think they would break that mold for a player that they weren’t able to get in for a workout seems improbable.
True, Huerter was electric at the combine where he turned several heads and his shooting marks from his final season at Maryland of 50.3 percent from the field and 41.7 percent from deep are impressive, but I still don’t know that it’s enough for Utah to guarantee him anything, even if they were a team that was known for doing that (which they’re not).
Next: Talented Utah Jazz draft prospect Troy Brown may be off board by No. 21
Whether or not a promise was extended from the Jazz to Huerter, the fact remains that if he’s available at No. 21, he may very well be one of Utah’s top options. This draft is shaping up to be one of the most intriguing in recent memory for Utah Jazz fans as a number of viable options could go as high as in the lottery or perhaps fall right into Utah’s lap with their first-round pick.
You’ll want to be sure to tune in on June 21 at 5:00 PM MT to see who Dennis Lindsey and Co. ultimately opt to select once the Jazz are on the clock.