Utah Jazz Mock Draft Roundup 2.0: Experts Predict First Pick

The Utah Jazz could go in a few different directions in this years NBA draft.

Feb 18, 2024; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Team Giraffe Stars forward Ron Holland (0) of the G League / Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

It’s that time, folks. With the NBA lottery slated for this Sunday, let’s see who the NBA pundits are projecting the Utah Jazz to take with their first pick.

Where it stands today, the most likely scenario is Utah picking at the No. 8 spot. Now, this could change if the ping-pong balls bounce Utah’s way on Sunday, but with where it stands today, let’s see what the latest mock drafts are saying.

PG Nikola Topic - Serbia - CBS Sports

Topic is an 18-year-old point guard from Serbia with great positional size who has already been a professional for multiple years. The Jazz remain in a rebuild and should simply take the best prospect available regardless of fit or need. In this mock draft, Topic is that player. - Gary Parrish

SF Dalton Knecht - Tennessee - USA Today

The Jazz were one of the least accurate teams in the NBA on 3-pointers this season, so Tennessee’s Dalton Knecht will likely have a high spot on their big board.

He was a consensus first-team All-American, SEC Player of the Year, and won the Julius Erving Award for the nation’s top small forward. He shot nearly 40.0 percent from beyond the arc as perhaps the most impactful transfer in the country.

Knecht averaged 0.46 points per offensive touch, via Stats Perform, the second-most among any player (minimum: 150 touches) included on the latest consensus big board. - Bryan Kalbrosky

SF Ron Holland - G League Ignite - Bleacher Report

Ron Holland should find himself in the best-player-available conversation at No. 8, and the Grizzlies could deem him interchangeable with 6'6" size, explosive athleticism and defensive quickness.

At worst, he projects as a high-level energizer who'll provide rim pressure and finishing if nothing else improves. But over the course of the G League season, we saw enough signs of ball-handling and tough shotmaking for scouts to feel optimistic about his ability to develop more offensively in the half court. - Jonathan Wasserman

SG Stephen Castle - UConn - The Ringer

Keyonte George was a mid-first-round pick hit last year, and Castle could be the perfect complement for him due to his defense-first abilities. Castle needs to improve as a shooter but brings just about everything else the Jazz could need next to George. -Kevin O’Connor

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