2026 NBA Draft Needs: Utah Jazz

The Utah Jazz just missed out on the number one overall pick, but getting their choice of several blue-chip prospects is not a bad consolation prize. The Jazz have struggled to rebuild following the Gobert/Mitchell era, but for the first time since then, they have the pieces to build a playoff team. 

State of the Team:

Retooling: They have pieces to compete but haven’t put them together.

Positional Strengths and Weaknesses:

Guards:

The Jazz’s guard corps is Keyonte George and Isaiah Collier. 

The Jazz’s roster is built big, with athletic ball-handling wings moving to shooting guard often. After trading away rookie Walter Clayton in the Jaren Jackson Jr. trade, only two long-term guard corps members remain: Keyonte George and Isaiah Collier. George’s third year had him finally break out, scoring in volume (23.6 PPG) and on respectable efficiency (45.6 FG% and 37.1 3P%). His assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.96 could be improved, but at 22 years old he’s not a finished product. Isaiah Collier is much more of a passer. He lacks a three-ball, but his 2.88 assist-to-turnover ratio and edge in assists over George (7.2 to 6.1) suggest he will be a solid backup point guard.

Wings/Forwards:

The Jazz’s wing corps is Ace Bailey, Cody Williams, Brice Sensabaugh, Svi Mykhailiuk, Lauri Markkanen, and Jaren Jackson Jr.

The Jazz have a logjam at wing and forward. They have a surplus of projects and not enough minutes to share. Ace Bailey showed steady improvement over his rookie year and had flashes of the three-level scorer he was at Rutgers. Cody Williams has improved, but his defense is average, and his three-ball is far from being a weapon. He may need to be traded because his slow development will not fit the accelerated timeline. 22-year-old Brice Sensabaugh’s shooting is an asset, but he may be more of a specialist than a full-time starter. Journeyman Svi Mykhailiuk is a better shooting specialist than Sensabaugh but is 28 years old and at his peak. Lauri Markkanen is now three seasons removed from his All-Star year. He’s played only 144 of a possible 246 games. The Jazz weren’t a good team in that time and wouldn’t have benefitted, but availability matters. Jaren Jackson Jr. is a defensive monster, but that monster needs his own rebounding monsters at small forward and center to make up for his lackluster ability to clean the glass.

Bigs:

The Jazz big corps is Walker Kessler and Jusuf Nurkic.

The Jazz benefit from the ability of Markkanen and Jackson to take on center duties when needed. But the Jazz still need a primary big man. The Jazz’s current center, Walker Kessler, is expected to re-sign with the team following a 5-game campaign cut short by shoulder surgery. When healthy, Kessler is a defensive linchpin who protects the rim, rebounds, and scores ultra-efficiently, averaging 9 to 12 points per game. Jusuf Nurkic is an expensive backup who hasn’t been the same since a scary 2019 ankle injury. He can’t be a plus starter anymore, as evidenced by his tenure in Phoenix, but as a consistent backup, he can provide value to a competing team.

Draft Needs:

The Jazz need more primary ball handlers. Keyonte George is a positive piece, but adding a scoring secondary ball handler could make up for his lack of elite playmaking. The Jazz have plenty of depth at wing and forward. They could also use a third center as insurance for Kessler and Nurkic. Perimeter defense is another hole that needs to be filled. Jackson, Kessler, and Markkanen, to an extent, are all dependable defenders, but the Jazz lack the bruising point-of-attack defenders that playoff teams carry multiple of. Bailey, Williams, and Sensabaugh have the tools to be switchable and take some of the burden, but they lack an Alex Caruso, Deuce McBride, Toumani Camara, or even the aging Jrue Holiday or Kris Dunn. 

Prospects Who Fit:

Darryn Peterson (SG/Guard, Kansas)

Peterson could have been the consensus number one overall prospect, but an up-and-down freshman year filled with injuries at Kansas has made most wary. However, he has the highest ceiling of any player in this draft. At 6-foot-5, 199 pounds, with a 6-foot-9 wingspan, at 19 years old, Peterson is a springy athlete. His three-level scoring, his 57.8 true shooting percentage on a 33.5 usage rate, his off-ball defensive instincts, and his “switchability” on wings make him a potential future MVP. 

Injuries that pulled Peterson in and out of the lineup seemed more like bad luck than an indicator of future issues. However, his game was noticeably different from his last year in high school. He shifted from being an athletic finisher to a shot maker. With better health, the hope is those two sides of his game will blend like peanut butter and jelly in the NBA. In the mix with all this is Peterson’s passing. He posted a 1.0 assist-to-turnover ratio, averaging 1.6 assists and 1.6 turnovers. He has vision, a good feel for windows, and delivered plenty of highlight-worthy passes. But most of the time at Kansas, he got his own shot first and foremost. Whether this is because of fewer drives, lack of chemistry due spotty availability, or just being young, the NBA will test if he can expand his playmaking.

Peterson’s defense would make him one of the best defenders among the Jazz’s guards from day one. He has all the athletic tools to be even more. His help defense is beyond question, but with the Jazz’s need for on-ball defense, he could make another jump and take on that role. A backcourt platoon of Collier, George, and Peterson could mesh well, with Collier as the bridge between the two ball-dominant guards. In time, this group can let Peterson slowly take on the ball-handling duties, and he can focus on acclimating to the game. Time will tell what Darryn Peterson’s peak will be, but the Jazz could land the elite guard every contending team needs. Asking a 19-year-old to step in as the franchise's two-way superstar is a lot, but Peterson has the generational skills and tools to step into the bright lights and shine.

Jaden Bradley (PG/Guard, Arizona)

The Jazz need more role players in their guard room who don’t need the ball to be effective. Picking up Jaden Bradley in the second round could provide the Jazz with an ideal fit. They will need to trade back into the second, but the 6-foot-2½, 205-pound guard out of Arizona with a 6-foot-6 wingspan is worth it.

Bradley is an older prospect as a true senior, but he gelled with an Arizona team that went all the way to the Final Four in the NCAA Tournament. He doesn’t have elite athleticism, but he is springy and a hard-nosed point-of-attack defender. As Arizona’s primary on-ball defender, he harried ball handlers up and down the court, navigated screens well, and played with active hands. His offense is highlighted by strong, contact-embracing finishing and a low-volume but consistent jump shot. This is all underscored by his connective passing.

If the Jazz select Darryn Peterson, they will have three promising ball-handling guards all vying for the ball. Bradley is a player who can mesh and play as a secondary or even tertiary handler. He did so on an Arizona team with fellow draft prospects Brayden Burries and Koa Peat. Doing the dirty work, sacrificing his own shot for the good of the team, the timely step-up, Bradley displayed it all. Bradley doesn’t profile as a superstar or star but adding a high-floor contributor with good defensive instincts, one who keeps an offense humming by not demanding the ball, is exactly what the Jazz need from rotation pieces. Especially when the playoffs roll around.