Jazz Rumor Mill Heats Up on Doorstep of NBA Draft
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Only two days remain until the Utah Jazz will be confronted with some big decisions that will reshape the roster. What can Jazz fans expect as we inch closer to Thursday night?
NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski sat down with Richard Jefferson on ESPN’s NBA Today, sharing his thoughts on the topic.
“This is the time of the week — Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday —leading into the draft where teams will get more serious about what they might be willing to offer," Wojnarowski said. “There’s often a lot of dancing around leading up to it.”
Armed with three first-round picks and the means to move up via trade, it appears Jazz fans could be in for a wild ride. Let’s take a peek at what’s being said that could directly or indirectly affect the outcome for Utah on draft night.
- Wojnarowski is reporting that the Portland Trail Blazers would need to be “blown away” in order to trade the No. 3 overall pick.
- Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report expects Anthony Black to be off the board when it’s the Dallas Mavericks turn at ten.
- Wasserman also believes Derick Lively, Jalen Hood-Schifino, Kobe Bufkin, and Bilal Coulibaly are seen as lottery picks. This could leave Nick Smith and Keyonte George being drafted in the 15-20 range.
- According to FanDuel, Taylor Hendricks is the favorite to be selected at No. 9 with +350 odds.
- ESPN draft analyst Jonathon Ginovy mentioned the Jazz as being a candidate that could trade up to the No. 5 spot (Detroit Pistons) and draft Jarace Walker.
- Ginovy also claims Cam Whitmore’s draft stock has taken a hit due to his workouts just being “so-so”. He’ll be in the nine spot when ESPN’s final mock draft comes out.
- Yahoo Sports' final mock draft has the Jazz selecting Taylor Hendricks (9), Keyonte George (16), and Rayan Rupert (28).
All bets are off as we get closer to the big day. Stay tuned.
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