The Utah Jazz finished the 2025-26 season with a woeful 22-60 record, tied for the fourth-worst in the NBA with the Sacramento Kings. That, in turn, also means the Jazz and the Kings are currently tied for the fourth-best odds in the 2026 draft lottery.
A coin flip will decide who ends up fourth, but ultimately, both teams will have a solid chance, on paper, to win the lottery. Winning it would give the Jazz a chance to select the talented AJ Dybantsa in the 2026 NBA Draft.
Dybantsa (who has yet to declare for the draft) is widely expected to be a top-two pick, and he went to high school and college in Utah. It would be fitting if he ends up with the Jazz, but if history is any indicator, there is no chance of this happening.
This will be the 12th time the Jazz are in the lottery, and they didn’t move up even once on the 11 previous occasions. It’s a shocking statistic, and here we take a look at their past results.
2004 Lottery
Projection: 14th pick
Received: 14th pick
The fact that the lottery was introduced in 1985 and the Jazz’s first selection only came in 2004 is quite impressive. They stayed where they were at 14th and selected Kris Humphries.
2005 Lottery
Projection: 5th pick
Received: 6th pick
The Jazz got their first dose of bad luck in 2005 as they slipped from the fifth pick to the sixth. They would trade that pick before the 2006 NBA Draft, though, moving up to third to select Deron Williams.
That proved to be a great decision, but they had to give up the sixth pick, the 27th pick, and a conditional 2006 first-round pick to the Portland Trail Blazers. The asking price would have been a bit lower if they hadn’t dropped.
2006 Lottery
Projection: 14th pick
Received: 14th pick
The Jazz found themselves in the lottery again in 2006 and stayed where they were. They selected Ronnie Brewer 14th overall.
2011 Lottery
Projection: 6th and 12th picks
Received: 3rd and 12th picks
The Jazz finally saw a pick jump up in the lottery in 2011, but it wasn’t their own. They had gotten the Brooklyn Nets‘ 2011 first-round pick by trading Williams to them. That Nets selection went from sixth to third, and the Jazz selected Enes Kanter with that pick.
As for the Jazz’s own pick, it remained at 12th, and they selected Alec Burks.
2013 Lottery
Projection: 14th pick
Received: 14th pick
The Jazz stayed where they were in 2013, but traded their 14th and 21st picks on draft night to the Minnesota Timberwolves for the ninth pick. They landed Trey Burke with this deal.
2014 Lottery
Projection: 4th pick
Received: 5th pick
The Jazz would get unlucky again in 2014 as they dropped to fifth and eventually selected Dante Exum. Andrew Wiggins, Joel Embiid, and Aaron Gordon went in the top four that year, so they certainly missed out in a big way.
2015 Lottery
Projection: 12th pick
Received: 12th pick
The Jazz didn’t drop in 2015, but they didn’t go up either. With that 12th pick, they’d select Trey Lyles.
2016 Lottery
Projection: 12th pick
Received: 12th pick
It was the same as 2015 in 2016 for the Jazz. They’d select Taurean Prince 12th, but then immediately moved him in a three-team deal to acquire George Hill.
2023 Lottery
Projection: 9th pick
Received: 9th pick
The Jazz would stay away from the lottery for quite some time after 2016, but returned in 2023 after the Donovan Mitchell era ended. They stayed at ninth and selected Taylor Hendricks.
2024 Lottery
Projection: 8th pick
Received: 10th pick
Just like in 2014, the Jazz dropped in 2024. This time, though, it was by two spots instead of one. With that 10th pick, the Jazz selected Cody Williams.
2025 Lottery
Projection: 1st pick (tied with flattened odds)
Received: 5th pick
Lastly, we get to 2025, and this was easily the worst of the drops for the Jazz. They had the worst record in the NBA in 2024-25, which gave them a 14.0% chance to get the No. 1 pick. Not only did the Jazz not get that top pick to draft Cooper Flagg, but they also dropped out of the top four. That was brutal, to say the least.
The Jazz would select Ace Bailey fifth, and he did at least end his rookie season well. Bailey is no Flagg, but he has shown he could be a franchise cornerstone.
