Thurl Bailey To Represent Utah Jazz at 2024 NBA Draft Lottery

An ex-Utah Jazz great will be representing the franchise that drafted him in 1983.

Feb 24, 2018; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; NBA former player Thurl Bailey rides a motorcycle onto the / Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports

The Utah Jazz have announced that ex-Jazzman Thurl Bailey will represent them in the upcoming NBA draft lottery on Sunday. Last season, current Jazz player Collin Sexton attended the yearly event, but this year, Utah chose to go with a well-known retired player to hopefully bring some luck to a franchise that will have their eyes set on a top-4 selection.

Sending our 1983 lottery pick to bring us some luck for this year’s Draft Lottery 🎰🤩

Don’t forget to tune in Sunday at 1PM MT to see which pick we get! #TakeNote | @bigTbailey pic.twitter.com/gvEe5Wefdk

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) May 10, 2024

Even though the odds are stacked against the Jazz in receiving a top-4 pick, it does feel like they're past due regarding selecting at the top of the draft. The last time Utah was in the top four was in 2011 when they selected Enes Kanter with the No. 3 overall pick. Also, Utah has never picked No. 1 in the franchise's history. Although they received the No. 2 selection in 1980 when they selected Darrell Griffith out of Louisville.

The only other top-5 picks that Utah has ever been given are Deron Williams (No.3), Dante Exum (No. 5), and Dominique Wilkins (No. 3). Wilkins was later traded for John Drew, Freeman Williams, and one-million dollars cash.

The Jazz will have a 6% chance of getting the No. 1 selection and a 26.2% of landing in the top four. The most likely scenario is to stay at eight at 34.1%. Also, there's a possibility that Utah regresses. There's a 32.1% shot they'll get the ninth pick and a 6.7% chance for number 10.

Also, although a long shot, it’s still possible the Jazz could convey their first selection to the Oklahoma City Thunder. The pick is top-10 protected, and there’s a .4% chance the Jazz could land in the eleven spot.

To discourage teams from tanking, the NBA changed the odds regarding the top selections in 2019. Before the change, the last-place franchise had a 25% chance of receiving the No.1 pick, while the second and third were at 19.9% and 15.6%, respectively. Under the current rules, the bottom two franchises both receive a 14% of getting the No. 1 pick.

However, thanks to the change, the Jazz have a better shot of landing in the top 4. Under the old system, Utah would have a 2.8% chance of getting the No. 1 pick and a 9.9% chance of landing in the top three.

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