The Charlotte Hornets finished one spot ahead of the Utah Jazz in the 2025 NBA Draft lottery. Obviously, that's not ideal for the Jazz, but in the last two years, the Hornets went against the current with their draft selection, shocking the masses in the process. If that trend continues, that just might be a win for the Jazz in the end.
For context, in 2023, many believed Scoot Henderson was the best player coming out of that class after Victor Wembanyama. However, the Hornets, who worked out both of them, ultimately took Brandon Miller instead, which was met with plenty of skepticism.
Since then, Miller's results show that the Hornets struck gold on that gamble. However, the following year, when Charlotte had the No. 6 pick, they went with Tidjane Salaun, who was considered a very raw prospect, and the Hornets were considered better off trading down.
Salaun's rookie season was so uneventful that it rivaled Cody Williams' performance in his first year as a Jazzman. While the Miller gamble paid off big-time, Salaun did not produce nearly the same results. They still shared the same commonality in that Charlotte went with the chaotic picks instead of the safe ones, which begs the question of whether they will try it again in 2025.
If that happens, the Jazz could get the player they have their sights set on out of the top four. Typically, that doesn't happen, but the Hornets have shown that they don't mind going with the surprise pick, so it's not a pipe dream per se.
Ace Bailey and VJ Edgecombe are the two players projected to come after Cooper Flagg and Dylan Harper. There hasn't been any intel regarding who the Jazz want specifically yet, but if the Hornets say take someone else who isn't either of those two, that gives the Jazz a top-four pick while not technically having one.
A scenario like this played out the last time the Jazz had the No. 5 pick
The last time the Jazz had the No. 5 pick was in 2014, a draft projected to be loaded with young talent. The team picking ahead of the Jazz was the Orlando Magic, who decided to pick Aaron Gordon at No. 4. It looks dumb in hindsight, but picking Gordon that high was maligned across the NBA.
That led to the Jazz getting Dante Exum at No. 5, which was mostly celebrated then. Exum was raw but an elite defender with the tools to become something special offensively. Hindsight is 20/20, but Jazz fans know that while Exum was a bust, it wasn't from a lack of talent but from extremely bad luck with injuries.
While Gordon has become one of the NBA's most dependable players, that didn't happen while he played for Orlando. It was more when he got to Denver that he asserted himself. If Charlotte does something similar to what Orlando did 11 years ago, the Jazz could get their next franchise player.
If that's the case, here's to hoping it won't turn into Exum 2.0.