Utah Jazz Land 'Multi-Skilled Guard' in Latest 2025 NBA Mock Draft

It may be early, but the Utah Jazz could have a big draft in store next summer.

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This year's batch of rookies may have yet to take the floor this season, yet mock drafts for next summer's NBA Draft continue to pile in for what looks to be an extremely appealing class in 2025-- and that means good news for the Utah Jazz.

While it's the top of this year's draft that's secured notable attention around league circles, including names like Cooper Flagg and Ace Bailey, there are several appealing names down the board to keep an eye on as the coming college season approaches, as one of the top names in the country could inevitably find their way to Utah next NBA offseason.

The Jazz do have a chance to bottom out and secure one of those premier talents atop of the draft board, but that's not how things shook out in The Athletic's latest mock draft by Sam Vecenie. In this way-too-early scenario, Utah landed the 6th-overall pick in a loaded class, which keeps them out of reach from the top guys, but still provides a chance to bring in an impact player.

With the 6th pick, the Jazz ended up selecting Illinois freshman Kasparas Jakucionis, a 19-year-old, 6-foot-5 guard, who Vecenie notes to be a skilled guard with a "feel for the game."

"The 6-5 guard is expected to run the show for Illinois this season following a terrific Under-18 campaign with Lithuania this summer," Vecenie said. "The idea here is a big, multi-skilled guard who can play with or without the ball in his hands...NBA teams see him as a great bet to have a tremendous season because of the intersection between his skill and feel for the game. Given the way the NBA is going, where those two things continue to prove themselves as being valuable, it’s easy to see the excitement building around him already."

Jakucionis isn't a Flagg or a Bailey type of talent, but it's hard to dislike a versatile member to add to an already talented young backcourt headlined by second-year Keyonte George and rookie Isaiah Collier.

He's proven to be an impressive offensive contributor as he played 19 games for Barcelona last season, averaging 19 points on 48% from the field and 38% from three. A solidified two-guard who can play on and off the ball could be the perfect glue to make this core gel together and inevitably makes him a key name to watch ahead of the season.

The top of this draft started with Flagg going first to the Brooklyn Nets, followed by Ace Bailey to the Washington Wizards and Dylan Harper to the Portland Trail Blazers. Of course, it would be huge for this Jazz rebuild to land one of those names, but it'll likely have to result in an ugly tank war to get their hands on any of them. Whether or not this Utah roster expects to be that rough remains to be seen.

Regardless, this draft cycle will be a fun one to watch for a class that league scouts continue to rave about months ahead of the action even going down.

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