The Utah Jazz have to feel pretty good about themselves with the problem they had coming into this season. This is the last year they were in danger of giving up a potential lottery pick to Oklahoma City from the Derrick Favors trade, and luckily, not only is it unlikely it will happen, but they are in a position to guarantee it won't if all goes their way.
As it stands, the Jazz have the NBA's fifth-worst record at 21-52, giving them a 99.4% chance at keeping their pick. The pick they owe the Thunder is top-eight protected. If it falls to nine, it goes to OKC. Currently, there's a 0.6% chance that happens.
It's minuscule, but Utah had some pretty bad lottery luck in the past, which gives them further incentive not to take any chances and have all their bases covered. In case it wasn't clear, they pretty much do, but having a 100% chance of keeping their pick is better than 99.4%, and Utah has a rare opportunity to feasibly make that happen.
The Jazz could pass the Kings in the tanking standings
The Kings are only two games ahead of the Jazz in the tanking game with a record of 19-54. Sacramento is primarily in this position because of an injury-ravaged season (on top of, well, being the Kings) and, for some reason, have been on a bit of a late-season tear (for a team that was well out of the playoff picture for years).
In the last 10 games, they have gone 5-5. Not only that, but per Tankathon, they have one of the easiest remaining schedules in the NBA, with games against Brooklyn, New Orleans, and two against Golden State (who aren't tanking but are definitely faltering).
What about the Jazz, you may ask? Well, they have the toughest remaining schedule in the NBA. Not one of them; the toughest schedule remaining. They have games against Memphis and New Orleans, but otherwise their remaining games are against teams still fighting for playoff seeding: Oklahoma City, Los Angeles, Denver (twice), Cleveland, Houston, and Phoenix.
The Kings have to win two games, and the Jazz have to avoid winning any at all costs, which is doable. If they tie, there will be a coin toss for who gets the better odds at the lottery. That might be good enough for Utah, but of course the preferred option is for Sacramento to win enough for Utah to pass them period.
It's still not out of the question for Utah to snatch the worst-record in the league, which, obviously, would be ideal, but they'll settle for fourth-worst, as it ensures the worst-case scenario of giving their pick up to OKC, can't happen.