5 Utah Jazz players that should have done more based on their draft position
From Cody Wilmans, I mean, Williams, to Dante Exum, these five guys never deserved their draft spots. And, a book about NBA All-Star Vin Baker's battle, reviewed.
It is nearing the time when the Utah Jazz will either make draft moves … or move out of this 2025 NBA Draft. In celebration or lack thereof, let’s talk about the five worst Jazz draft picks of all time.
Cody Williams
» Chances are higher than usual that Williams, who was the Jazz' No. 9 pick in the lottery of the 2024 NBA Draft, will be traded.
The Jazz miss on him was so epic that two advance scouts were fired according to a report from Zach Lowe, prior to the arrival of Austin Ainge as Jazz director of basketball operations last week.
The rookie out of Colorado averaged just six points and three rebounds. Compare that to what Isaiah Collier did though he was selected 20 picks later [broke John Stockton's single season Jazz rookie record for assists] and Kyle Filipowski, 23 picks later, and you can see why Jazz brass was more than a tad upset when the rookie out of Colorado didn’t produce.
Trey Burke
Burke never lived up to the hype he had coming out of Ohio state—in more ways than one. The one I’m referring to is of course the D-pic scandal that had Utahns far and wide laughing hysterically and literally slammed the door shut on any further progress for the guy in Utah, ever. Showing off your D here is the same as shotgunning a can of beer in Saudi Arabia; both will get you killed, one from strictly a career perspective.
That the Jazz traded their 14th and 21st picks in the 2013 NBA Draft for Burke—selected by Minnesota with its 9th—is further proof that Utah does not always hit the bullseye when it comes to players. Burke, who seriously once won the NAISMITH AWARD, only lasted three seasons here, and averaged 11 points per game. And yet it is that lasting image of his you know what that will be burned into all of our retinas, forever. He currently plays in China.
Dante Exum
No player in recent Jazz history was as hyped up as this Aussie, who was seen as a cannot-miss prospect when the Jazz took him with the No. 5 pick at the 2014 NBA Draft. Not only was Exum long, he provided the Jazz with unique ability to dish the rock and drive to the hoop.
The problem: his 6-feet-6-inches were literal razor wire to his own legs, as he tore his ACL during the off-season following his rookie year. And, when he wasn’t hopping around like a kangaroo, he was on the injured list. Knee this, shoulder that, bruises and bumps and a partially torn patellar tendon finally spelled his exit in 2019.
Even to this day, a specific portion of the Jazz fan base still wishes Exum was here, and that the Jazz didn’t fully unlock his potential. I don’t know about you, mate, but 6.3 points per game over 4.5 years doesn’t scream the fifth overall pick.
Kirk Snyder
The only, ONLY reason Snyder is ranked ahead of Exum on this list is this: there is no way on EARTH to explain what the Jazz were thinking drafting this guy No. 16.
The Nevada product Snyder was selected ahead of JR Smith, Delonte West, Tony Allen and Kevin Martin, all of whom had better NBA careers. The Jazz brass must have chosen Snyder based on how he played for the ‘Pack where he was the 2004 WAC Player of the Year—it’s the only logical reason I could find!
Snyder played 68 games for Utah and averaged five points and a rebound. In 2009, he was arrested for burglary and assault where he pleaded insanity. And you wonder why we’re freaking out with two weeks to go before the draft?!? Cmon, man.
Luther Wright
If Cody Williams is the poster child for horrific play as a Utah Jazz lottery pick, then Luther Wright is his father. At the time, the rookie out of Seton Hall was selected with the No. 18 pick in the 1993 NBA Draft by Frank Layden, himself a New Yawkuh.
Wright came in highly touted but went out of Utah a laughingstock to some after he found himself yelling at passersby at a pullout along interstate 80 near the Great Salt Lake, banging on trash cans and smashing car windows like the Incredible Hulk. It could have been the mosquitoes or the salty air, but it was likely the Utah culture and lack of nightlife that got this native of Jersey City down.
The very first clue that something might have been amiss was totally and completely missed by Jazz HQ, but when you flunk out of the famed St. Anthony’s High School coached by the Hall of Famer Bob Hurley Sr., that’s kind of a red flag, is it not? The other is that at Seton Hall, Wright averaged nine points (?), eight rebs (??) and two blocks (alright, that’s not bad) in two years (???). With the Jazz, Wright averaged 1.5 points and less than a rebound per game. If not for the fact that Utah had three other centers at the time, Wright would be higher up the list.
His career in the NBA short lived, Wright did get the professional help he needed, was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and hospitalized for a month, and currently lives in New Jersey. «
Overthink This Photo 📸
Because we don’t already have enough of a race problem, let’s rev up the black and white debate even more by posting this graphic in largely white-bread suburban Indiana where the film Hoosiers was shot, starring a white kid playing alongside his white teammates.
The feud Angel Reese has with Caitlin Clark has been going on longer than the number of sparkly pantsuits in her old [LSU] coach’s closet. When’s enough, enough?«
» Book Em Brian!
Today’s book: GOD AND STARBUCKS by Vin Baker [& Joe Layden]
» When Vin Baker was in the NBA, he was a menace, early on. A 6-foot-11, 275 pound man among boys who, as it turns out, was hiding a very serious drinking problem.
Selected 8th overall by Milwaukee in the same NBA Draft in ‘93 that saw the Jazz pick Luther Wright 16th, Baker was a 5-time All-Star for the Bucks and the Seattle SuperSonics.
After that, however, things began to fall apart for Baker. An only child from suburban Connecticut and the son of a minister/mechanic and bank teller, Vin explains how he had to vomit in the morning in order to have the stomach to drink for the rest of the day.
I’ve had many relatives who were alcoholics, and all died slow and painful deaths. But not for the grace of God did Baker ask his father for the help he needed in recovery one day, and now is living a healthy life because of it. Highly recommend the book if you’re battling an addiction or know someone who is. «
#BullshitOrNot
» Angel Reese is still racking up literal awards for rebounding her own misses. Bullshit or Not? You decide…
Thanks for reading; be safe and be well. I’ll see ya next time. «