After many criticized the Utah Jazz for being too good to be bad but too bad to be good, they have done what many hoped they would do by tanking the season. At the same time, their most recent results have indicated that they still aren't the worst of the worst
After throttling the Heat and beating the Magic - two teams with playoff aspirations - the Jazz have indicated that even with all the games they've lost, they're still not quite bad enough to be the lowest of the low.
Because of that, The Athletic's Tony Jones explained why, despite how bad the Jazz have been overall, there are still teams currently worse off than them.
"Currently, the Jazz are 9-25, which would give them the fifth-best lottery odds. Truthfully, that might be their ceiling. The Washington Wizards, Charlotte Hornets, and Toronto Raptors are all worse teams than Utah. The New Orleans Pelicans have a worse record than the Jazz, but they can become better if they return to full health," Jones wrote.
Given that the upcoming draft has can't-miss prospects like Cooper Flagg, this isn't exactly great news for those who want the Jazz to get their next face of the franchise. However, since the tanking odds are more spread out, and the Jazz have taken a necessary step back, that's not too awful.
With the fifth-best tanking odds, their odds of a top-four pick are at 42.1%, while their odds for the No. 1 pick are at 10.5%. That's not very high, but it's not too far off from the odds of the worst team in the NBA record-wise, who would wield a 14% chance at the No. 1 pick.
This is why the Jazz will be really interesting to watch as we inch closer and closer to the trade deadline. The progress of their young players will make it more urgent to trade their veterans.
However, all the teams that Jones mentioned will also be active sellers at the trade deadline
Why the slow progress is still good for the Jazz
Jones also emphasized that these recent wins show that even if their tanking plans are in effect, their recent progress is good for their young players.
"That’s what makes a weekend like this important for Utah. Yes, the Jazz are better off losing games, but you have to have some affirmation that doing the right things on the floor will yield positive results. If nothing else, that’s good for a young Jazz roster mentally.
"Lately, the Jazz have been doing a lot of good things on the floor. They have run good offense and created good shots through the offense. They have been stingy defensively of late, forcing the Magic to shoot 35 percent from the field in Sunday night’s 105-92 win."
While many will use this to say that this was the exact problem for the Jazz for the last two years, much of their success back then came down to having their veterans like Mike Conley and Kelly Olynyk (along with Lauri Markkanen blossoming into a star). The difference between then and now is that their recent wins have come from their young players like Brice Sensabaugh taking a step forward.
The Jazz plan to construct their next playoff team over the next few years, and they'll do so by tanking. They'll need the right talent to do that, but they also need the right mindset. These two wins may get in the way of their tanking to some degree, but it can also be baby steps to something magnificent.