Jazz insider reveals shocking reason Utah passed on Paul George for Gordon Hayward

Despite how badly things ended between Gordon Hayward and the Utah Jazz, they can take solace knowing he was among the four best players in the draft. The only player taken after him that turned out better was Paul George. The Athletic's Tony Jones revealed how a college game between George's alma mater, Fresno State, and a college in Utah stopped the Jazz from picking him.

When future NBA prospect Ace Bailey was compared to George before he entered the NBA, Jones revealed that Utah State had a lot to do with why the Jazz decided not to pick George.

He then elaborated on one game that convinced Utah that George would not be the right pick if the opportunity existed. He confirmed in another tweet that it was around that same time that Hayward had impressed enough to convince the Jazz he was their giy at No. 9.

For further context, this game took place on March 1, 2010. The Utah State Aggies blew out the Fresno State Bulldogs, 76-39. George spearheaded the disaster, scoring 12 points on four-for-13 shooting, which included five turnovers.

The rest was history from there. George evolved into quite an excellent player with the Indiana Pacers. He also reached his All-Star form a few years before Hayward did. It may not look too great in hindsight, but it's those performances that can sway teams to lose interest in prospects.

Like George back then, Bailey's actions leading up to the draft, like canceling draft workouts, can hurt his stock. Some team will throw caution to the wind and take him anyway, but there's no telling if Bailey will be another George or if he'll be another Cam Reddish.

Picking Hayward over George is an interesting Jazz what-if

Again, the Jazz should be happy that they got one of the best players from that draft, even if they may not have ended up with the best one. Still though, knowing George's career arc, maybe Utah goes on a different path with him instead of Hayward.

George reached his All-Star level by his third year in the league while Hayward reached his around his fifth year. When the former reached that level, the Jazz still had Paul Millsap and Al Jefferson. With George elevating his game that well, maybe Utah believes it's best to keep those guys and see where things go from there.

At that point of his career, Hayward proved he was solid while George proved he was special. The Jazz may have had the same mindset they did with Donovan Mitchell and think it's best to build around George. That might mean no Mitchell, and it may mean no Gobert, but it could have meant the Jazz had somethin even more promising in the early 2010s.

What-ifs are fun, but they will always be pointless. The funny thing is, with a decade and a half having passed since then, one can only wonder Utah will be a decade and a half from now when it's all said and done from this draft.