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SALT LAKE CITY — Any hope of the Utah Jazz becoming a championship contender over the next few years almost assuredly involves combining success in multiple drafts sprinkled in with player acquisitions.
The first chance to move closer to the goal comes with this week's NBA draft, during which the Jazz have three first-round picks. Selecting at Nos. 9, 16 and 28, Jazz management is charged with upgrading the roster either by drafting the best available talent or through some sorts of trades with the picks.
Whatever the path, Thursday night could be one of the most intriguing draft's in Jazz history. Expect fireworks in some fashion.
As history has shown, Danny Ainge lives for these opportunities. Owner Ryan Smith's most trusted advisor has got to be salivating, ripe with enough options at his disposal to accelerate the franchise's timeline.
For the doubters, be quiet. Ainge has done it already, and in some cases doing more with fewer assets than he has now.
To date, as the executive director of basketball operations for the Boston Celtics, Ainge's crowning achievement came 16 years ago when he engineered one of the best trades in NBA history. After the Celtics stumbled to a 24-58 record, the second worst in franchise history, he acquired Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett in separate deals to pair with holdover Paul Pierce.
Boston then proceeded to win its 17th NBA championship the following season in 2006-07, earning Ainge executive of the year in the process. The team's 66-16 record represented a 42-win improvement, the most dramatic in NBA history.
Ainge wasn't done maneuvering, trading the aging Garnett and Pierce to the Brooklyn Nets in 2013 for a package of primarily three first-round picks stretched over three years. With Ainge in charge, the Celtics drafted the future nucleus of Marcus Smart (2014), Jaylen Brown (2016) and Jayson Tatum (2017).
The three players, all of whom are still under 30, have helped Boston reach the Eastern Conference finals in three of the last four years. The Celtics lost to the Golden State Warriors in the finals last season.
Less than one year after becoming Utah's chief executive officer in December 2021, Ainge completely reshaped the roster last summer. Two blockbuster deals had All Stars Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell shipped off to Minnesota and Cleveland, respectively, for multiple players — including starters Lauri Markkanen, who became a first-time All Star last season, and Walker Kessler — and a slew of first-round picks stretching out over the next several years.
The Jazz were one of the surprise teams last season, drawing rave reviews in Will Hardy's first year as an NBA head coach. But they still finished seven games below .500, preferring to solidify a top-10 draft pick rather than push to make the playoffs.
Phrase 2 of the rebuild has arrived, creating an expectation that rivals any hype going into the draft in recent years for the Jazz. With many options available, to quote Garnett after his Celtics won the championship, anything is possible.
The only certainty heading into the draft is the San Antonio Spurs selecting Victor Wembanyama with the first pick. The versatile big man from France is considered the best prospect since LeBron James entered the league 20 years ago.
After the Charlotte Hornets take either Brandon Miller or Scoot Henderson at No. 2, the draft could get crazy with several deals. The teams selecting 3-6 (in order, Portland, Houston and Detroit) each have expressed interest in trading out for veteran players or down for more draft picks.
Conceivably, the Jazz could package picks and players to move up several spots to take the likes of Cam Whitmore, one of the Thompson twins (Amen or Ausar), Anthony Black or Jarace Walker. French prospect Bilal Coulibaly, who is only 18 years old, is likely to be on the board at No. 9.
Stay tuned, it could be worth your time.
