Utah Jazz
Needs: backup PF, C, SG
Round 1 (12) Kevon Looney, F, Fr. UCLA
Round 2 (42) Rakeem Christmas, F/C, Sr., Syracuse
Round 2 (54) Larry Nance Jr., F, Sr., Wyoming
Analysis: The Jazz are one of the few teams in the lottery without any glaring needs. Their starting five of the future is pretty set: Dante Exum at point guard, Alec Burks at shooting guard, Gordon Hayward at small forward, Derrick Favors at power forward and Rudy Gobert at center. That starting five has a chance to be awesome someday, and I don't think anyone in Utah is going to mess with it. Burks is the biggest question mark of the group, but given his recent contract extension, they're going to try to make it work. And even if it doesn't, the way Rodney Hood played toward the end of the season gives them hope that his replacement might already be on their roster.
That frees them to take the best player available, and I think that's Looney. If there is a third tier in this draft, it ends around No. 12 and Looney is the last guy in it. He has the talent of a top-five pick, but it's still unclear where his position will be in the pros, and he's seen as a longer-term project than most. Utah has the flexibility to be able to wait on him. Someday he could be backing up both Favors and Hayward. He's one of the most versatile players in the draft and a steal at No. 12. Christmas doesn't have a huge amount of upside, but he's was super productive his senior year, can play the 4 and the 5 and should provide some rebounding and shot blocking off the bench.
