Could Jazz Follow Mavs' Tanking Tactic in 2023-24?
The Utah Jazz are ahead of schedule in terms of roster building as we approach the one-year mark of the Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert trades. The emergence of Lauri Markkanen and Walker Kessler may have put Utah back in the playoff conversation heading into next year but the oddsmakers don’t see it that way.
DraftKings has Utah projected as a bottom-five team in its early projections for the 2023-24 season. If the bookies are correct, is it possible Jazz fans would have to endure another season of tank talk?
Let’s examine
The topic of teams potentially letting the foot off the gas in 2023-24 came up in The Woj Pod, with ESPN NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski sharing his insight on the matter.
“I think — and part of it is the draft next year, there’s no Victor — there may never be another Victor,” Wojnarowski said. “I think because of the play-in — you got two play-in teams in the Conference Finals. Teams are seeing there’s a little more parity in the league right now and there’s opportunities to get into the playoffs and advance. A lot of teams feel that the race to the bottom makes less sense right now.”
Wojnarowski may be correct, but Utah is in a unique situation. Certainly, the Jazz should be putting their best foot forward to start the season, but the front office could be motivated to lose games as the year progresses.
The issue with Utah is the 2024 first-round pick it traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder is top-10 protected. The Jazz could find themselves in the exact same dilemma that the Dallas Mavericks were faced with this past year.
The Mavericks deliberately missed the play-in tournament because of the possibility of losing their first-round pick to the New York Knicks, which was also top-10 protected. The NBA ended up slapping the Mavericks $750,000 for sitting key players in the last week of the season, but the damage was already done. Dallas retained the pick and will be drafting No. 10 overall in the upcoming NBA draft.
Could the Jazz find themselves in the exact same predicament in 2023-24? Just like the Mavericks, the Jazz can get their 2023-24 first-round pick back if they finish in the bottom 10.
It’s a situation that will require a wait-and-see approach, but what we do know from this past year is Jazz management isn’t afraid to sit out key players when draft position is at stake.
At the least, it will be something to watch as we get a clearer picture of where Utah is trending next year. If the Jazz end up being on the bubble to make the play-in tournament, then it should get real interesting.
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