This year’s NBA draft appears to be one of the strongest in several years, and losing enough games to become a lottery team could result in a bigger payoff than even making a play-in game.<\/p>\n
The NBA has frowned on teams that appear to be tanking for a high pick, and the league implemented a player participation policy<\/a> in September 2023 to try to discourage clubs from losing on purpose. Teams could face league discipline if star players don’t suit up for certain games.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n But the Utah Jazz might have found a way around that policy.<\/p>\n The Jazz did not play stars like Lauri Markkanen and Jaren Jackson Jr.<\/a> in the fourth quarter of recent close games. Both played three quarters in recent road games against Miami<\/a> and Orlando<\/a>. The Magic rallied from 17 points down to win 120-117, but the Jazz defeated the Heat 115-111.<\/p>\n Coach Will Hardy was asked after the game at Miami whether he considered playing Markkanen and Jackson in the fourth quarter.<\/p>\n \u201cI wasn’t,\u201d Hardy said succinctly.<\/p>\n NBA Commissioner Adam Silver likely will address the topic when he meets with the media Saturday during All-Star weekend in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n The NBA fined Utah $100,000<\/a> last season after the Jazz rested Markkanen in multiple games.<\/p>\n He and the recently-acquired Jackson are the building blocks for the Jazz<\/a> to try to get back into contention. They traded with Memphis on Feb. 3 for the two-time All-Star and 2023 Defensive Player of the Year.<\/p>\n Jackson, however, will be out for the foreseeable future. He will undergo surgery over the NBA all-star break to remove a growth from his left knee, discovered by an MRI in a physical following the trade. Jackson averaged 22.3 points in 24 minutes per game after joining the Jazz.<\/p>\n Utah has prioritized player development with younger players on its roster at the expense of chasing wins. The front office is motivated to hold onto a first-round pick in this year’s draft that is top-eight protected. Falling outside the bottom eight in the standings means Utah would lose that pick to Oklahoma City.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n A number of teams, including the Jazz, would seem to have a great interest in securing a high selection for this year’s draft.<\/p>\n