Jazz Land 'Versatile' Duke Big Man in Latest NBA Mock Draft
As the 2023-24 NBA season begins to wrap up, some are starting to take a look ahead to this summer to see what the future holds for teams in this NBA Draft. March Madness is also beginning to quickly approach as soon as next week, leading to an increasing number of eyes focused on some of the incoming rookies for next year.
It makes for a good time to glance at where the Utah Jazz land in the latest mock draft projections. Now that they've dropped into the bottom ten of the league standings and inching closer to securing their top-ten protected first, we're starting to get a better sense of who will be the incoming guys to target if this front office gets control of their pick.
As Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman sees it in his latest NBA mock, the Jazz could select Duke's standout center Kyle Filipowski with their ninth-overall selection to further bolster their frontcourt.
Wasserman dove into his rationale for taking the seven-foot offensive big in the mid-lottery:
Scoring mismatch isn't the draw to Kyle Filipowski anymore. It's the versatility—a specific combination of shooting, passing, physical finishing and switchable defense that separates him from most 7-footers and can give a frontcourt a different feel or advantage.
The flashes of transition ball-handling or half-court face-up moves into drives are a bonus and allow Filipowski to generate his own offense in space. But his real value comes from making his lineup better with floor-spacing, post passing, cleaning up inside and his ability to slide and guard around the perimeter.
Filipowski has had a major sophomore season for the Blue Devils this year, averaging 16.7 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 2.8 assists on 50.4/35.3/66.4 shooting splits.
His combination of size and scoring ability would inevitably make him an intriguing option for the Jazz if their first-round pick ends up conveying. A packed frontcourt consisting of Filipowski alongside Lauri Markkanen, Walker Kessler, John Collins, and Taylor Hendricks would be an extremely lengthy, yet imposing group for any team to match up against on a nightly basis.
Going into this summer, seeing where Utah's priorities lie for the draft will be interesting to keep note of. Whether it be bringing in another guard to develop alongside Keyonte George, a lengthy wing that can add depth and play on both ends of the floor, or even a big like Filipowski, the Jazz will be in for another substantial pickup for their youth movement.
Within the last month of this NBA season, Jazz fans need to keep a keen eye on how the final standings shake out to decide how the lottery will look for a team seeking an addition to their impressive core of young talent. Already armed with a projected late first and an early second, this summer could be yet another massively impactful draft in Salt Lake City.
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