SALT LAKE CITY — Unfortunately for the Utah Jazz, they won't be drafting the nearly unanimous favorite NBA prospect this year.
The 2023 NBA Draft Lottery took place Tuesday evening, with the 14 teams who did not make the playoffs being drawn to determine the order of picks. Victor Wembanyama of France was widely regarded as a once-in-a-generation talent, who will almost undoubtedly be picked first.
Utah's chances at drawing #1 in the lottery were slim (4.5%), but Jazz fans hoped for a miracle. Some even offered tributes to the iconic "9th & 9th Whale" sculpture in Salt Lake City in hopes of landing Wembanyama.
The Jazz ended up with pretty rotten luck, drawing number 9 out of 14.
The San Antonio Spurs were the lucky ones, landing #1. The full order is below:
- Spurs
- Hornets
- Trail Blazers
- Houston Rockets
- Detroit Pistons
- Orlando Magic
- Indiana Pacers
- Washington Wizards
- Utah Jazz
- Dallas Mavericks
- Orlando Magic
- Oklahoma City Thunder
- Toronto Raptors
- New Orleans Pelicans
With "Wemby" no longer an option, here are the top 10 draft prospects Utah could end up with, depending on who is chosen by teams 2-8: (ranked by Sports Illustrated)
2. Scoot Henderson, G League Ignite
3.Brandon Miller, Alabama
4. Jarace Walker, Houston
5. Amen Thompson, Overtime Elite
6. Anthony Black, Arkansas
7. Taylor Hendricks, UCF
8. Cam Whitmore, Villanova
9. Ausar Thompson, Overtime Elite
10. Cason Wallace, Kentucky
Will Utah choose one of these top 10 young athletes? Or will they hedge their bets on another player that most talent scouts overlooked? We'll find out on June 22.
