Should the Utah Jazz trade up in the 2023 NBA Draft? Here are some trade ideas

Is it worth it for the Utah Jazz to trade up in the NBA Draft?

• By
  
  James Hansen
  
• on May 28, 2023 11:17 pm

We’re now less than a month away from the 2023 NBA Draft and there’s a lot of posturing going on. With the disappointment from not winning the lottery, some teams are rumored to be open for some potential trades. The question is, will the Utah Jazz want to make a draft day trade, and will it be worth it?

After a disappointing finish in the lottery, teams like the Rockets and Pistons may be interested in trading back. There’s also reports of the Pacers already being willing to listen to offers for their pick.

The question is, what would it take to move up to these spots in the lottery? The answer is a lot.

From Tony Jones we’ve gotten an idea of what the Jazz are looking at coming into this draft.

Utah has come away convinced that a good player will be available when it picks at the No. 9 spot. Also, the Jazz are optimistic about the value of the draft when they pick at No. 16 and No. 28. They feel that the draft is deep enough that they can add impactful talent at all three of their draft positions. Ideally, they want to add a lead ballhandler at some point in the draft. But, they won’t draft for fit at the expense of talent.

The Jazz are smart to go with the best player available strategy, but Jones mentions the Jazz are also want a lead ball handler. Finding that player that is both a lead ball handler, and also the best player available can be tricky.

About two weeks ago, Tony Jones also mentioned what the Jazz were thinking pre lottery and another thing they’ll be looking for, a number one option.

The clarity will be good for the front office. They will know where they will be picking. They will gather intel on who could be available and where. And, once the front office leaves Chicago when the combine ends, expect the Jazz to bring in a slew of prospects into Salt Lake City for individual workouts in order to get a look at guys in their own building. What the Jazz need is a No. 1 option. They need as much length relative to position as possible. And they need as much talent as possible. How much they can get in this draft remains to be seen. But, after Tuesday, they will have a good idea of where they stand.

The difficulty comes in how the Jazz, and any NBA team for that matter, find that player. Historically for the Jazz, they have gotten their number one option in the draft. They may be able to get that #1 option by trade but it’s never coming by way of free agency.

That makes the two ways of acquiring that #1 option either by trade or by drafting them. The draft is the ideal option because you typically have the player longer, and you…