Enough has been said about the Utah Jazz's tanking efforts not paying off for them. Even so, they still have a high lottery pick in a loaded draft class, and the No. 5 pick has produced some good players in the past. For that reason, the worst-kept secret about the Jazz having the No. 5 pick is that they can do no wrong when they're on the clock, and the latest from Jake Fischer confirms that.
Fischer reported on The Stein Line that while other teams are looking to trade up or sell off their picks, the Jazz are perfectly content staying at No. 5.
"As of now, Utah appears to hold the middle block in this Jenga Tower at No. 5. The Jazz, unlike the Sixers and Hornets, have not actively encouraged trade interest from teams further down the draft board, sources say. Utah also appears to be operating in contrast to Washington at No. 6, with some rival teams projecting the Wizards as a potential trade-up candidate to leapfrog the Jazz … and maybe even the Hornets."
Ever since the NBA Draft lottery happened, the common consensus is that after Cooper Flagg and Dylan Harper, picks 3-8 are interchangeable, meaning it could shake out in any order, with no one in particular standing out.
There's an argument to be made that some prospects may be better than others, but the Jazz truly are open to anything. They will take the best player available, and that could be anyone. There will be no one available that the Jazz could realistically pick where the consensus will be that they chose wrong because of how talented the other high-end prospects are.
On a roster that lacks a young centerpiece, anyone from Ace Bailey to V.J. Edgecombe to Tre Johnson to Kon Knueppel to Jeremiah Fears to Khaman Maluach could be just that as a Jazzman eight days from now. Sure, drafting any one of them will lead to questions, but this intel suggests the Jazz are content to sit back and let things play out.
The one downside to there being no standout
The irony is that because the Jazz are perfectly content to pick whoever they think is the best player available at No. 5, fans will not unanimously agree with who they pick when it's over. Even though every projected prospect from three to eight has a specific appeal to them, they all have flaws, so there will be cases in which they should have taken Player X over Player Y for Reason Z.
That means the pick will be divisive no matter what happens. If the Jazz had gotten No. 1 or 2 in this draft, no one would argue against Flagg or Harper. But there will be a branch of fans who will not take well to who the Jazz pick at No. 5. It's just inevitable.
The only way anyone will know for sure if the Jazz picked right will be when the 2025-26 season starts. The Jazz didn't get exactly get the best production out of their prized lottery pick last year, but with a higher pick this time around, they can expect at least a better performance from their incoming prized rookie in 2025.
No matter who that is, the Jazz clearly feel comfortable with who will be there at No. 5 no matter what. Hopefully, their faith and comfortability will be rewarded in no time.