Jazz See Huge Draft Lottery Development After Thunder Loss

The Utah Jazz have made some major strides preparing for this year's draft lottery.

Jared Koch | Apr 12, 2025

Apr 11, 2025; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz forward Kyle Filipowski (22) tries to get past Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jaylin Williams (6) and to the basket during the second half at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Chris Nicoll-Imagn Images / Chris Nicoll-Imagn Images

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Utah Jazz

The Utah Jazz have been diving deep into their tanking efforts across their 2024-25 campaign, effectively logging just 17 wins on the year and dropping to their worst record within franchise history, but it seems their brutal season could now officially be paying off in a big way.

Following the Jazz coming up short vs. the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday night, 111-145, it not only marked down Utah's 64th loss of the season, but cemented their status to land at least a top-six pick, no matter what transpires in May's lottery.

It's a rare spot for the Jazz to be in when looking at their franchise history, as Utah has only placed in the top six of the draft five times in 50-plus years. Their last time landing in the top six came during the 2014 NBA Draft when Dante Exum went fifth overall.

With tonight's loss, the @utahjazz will have no worse than the second-worst record in the NBA, which mean's they've guaranteed themselves at least a top six pick in the draft.

Jazz have selected in the top six only five times, including the year they traded Dominique Wilkins.
— Ben Anderson (@BensHoops) April 12, 2025

The Jazz and Washington Wizards are neck and neck for the honors of being this year's worst team in the NBA, tied at 17-64 with just one game to go. Utah has a date against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday, while Washington will face off against the Miami Heat.

Depending on how the results of those fair, they could ultimately decide each's fate for a top-five pick in this year's lottery.

As it stands, the Jazz and Wizards both have a 14.0% chance to land the number one pick next month, and that status won't change no matter the verdict of Sunday's games. However, the big aspect to watch will be whether Utah is fortunate enough to keep their worst-case scenario as strong as possible.

In a draft with strong impact players at the top, especially in the top four picks, getting the best shot to land within those first four spots will be critical down the stretch for Utah. Up to this point, they've done their part by placing right alongside Washington for those best chances, but all eyes lead to the final game of the year to see how well the exact results shake out.

And if the two tie with the same record? The league will have a coin toss to determine which of Utah and Washington will have the edge at number one, putting the chances truly up to luck for how the future of the Jazz's summer could transpire.

It's a compelling tank race to watch, and one that will end up coming down to the wire, depending on how Sunday's events unravel. For the Jazz, the task at hand is simple: lose against Minnesota, and hope luck falls in their favor for the rest of the way.

The 2025 NBA lottery takes place on May 12th in Chicago, where the Jazz will find out how well the results of this year's long-spanning tank process pan out.

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