Despite a declaration to compete, the Utah Jazz find themselves in a position where losing games is strategically necessary to improve their draft odds and rebuild the team. The article explores the team's shift back to a losing strategy, driven by the need to secure a high draft pick.
SALT LAKE CITY — With a touch of bravado, Austin Ainge definitively declared the Jazz were done tanking games for the sake of improving draft odds."You won't be seeing that this year," Ainge said during his introductory press conference in June after being named the team's president of basketball of operations.
For much of the last three seasons, Jazz management seemed comfortable stacking losses with an eye toward draft positioning. After trading away All-Stars Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell, the plan was to rebuild through stockpiling a slew of draft choices.In time, as those draft picks developed into actual talent on the team, intentionally losing would cease. For some reason, with his bold statement, Ainge went against conventional wisdom.Recognizing the painful nature of rebuilding for a proud franchise that made the playoffs from 1984 to 2003 during the lengthy careers of John Stockton and Karl Malone, the Jazz have no choice but to pile up the losses this season. After all, drafting well is the most logical way to compete for a championship.As Jazz fans know full well, the team needs to finish no lower than eighth in the lottery to keep its first-round pick in this June's draft. Through a trade involving Derrick Favors, the Oklahoma City Thunder own the pick if it is ninth or worse.Two games beyond the midway point of the season, the odds favor the pick staying with the Jazz. As it stands, they have about 95% chance of keeping the pick and close to a 35% to move up into the top four in the lottery.Team executives have privately admitted the Jazz need to keep the pick, meaning the best path forward is to lose. Even if it goes against the foundation of competition, the only way to get there is to sit the best players.Starting at the top, bench Lauri Markkanen for as many games as possible without drawing the ire from commissioner Adam Silver. The league fined the Jazz $100,000 in March for sitting Markkanen, who played in a career low 47 games last season. Far from an iron man, Markkanen has yet to play in more than 68 games in any of his prior eight seasonsThe fine, which amounts to pocket change for multi-billionaire owner Ryan Smith, was well worth the money. Although the Jazz dropped to fifth in the lottery, finishing with a franchise-worst 17-65 record allowed them to draft potential star Ace Bailey.Listing illness as the reason, Markkanen has missed the last four games. Not coincidently, minus their leading sco
Utah Jazz Tanking NBA Draft Austin Ainge Rebuilding
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