Though they came up short in their bid for a 2023 NBA Playoff berth, the Utah Jazz proved to be the biggest surprise team of the season. After trading away franchise cornerstones Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert and parting ways with head coach Quin Snyder during the summer leading into the campaign, the ball club was expected to contend for the top spot in the chase for coveted draft prospect Victor Wembanyama.
Instead, they went on to cultivate a record of 37-45, fell just shy of a Play-In Tournament nod, and saw their offseason trade acquisition Lauri Markkanen blossom into an All-Star and the league's Most Improved Player.
Now, moving forward, Danny Ainge and company will look to build off their team's surprising success by adding some new talents to the roster, and a cheap and easy way to do this is by means of the NBA Draft.
With the 2023 NBA Draft Lottery in the books, the Jazz hold the ninth overall selection on the night, which could very easily still allow them to land a quality young talent. There's a strong argument to be made that UConn guard Jordan Hawkins should be a serious option worth considering.
Following a successful two-year stint with the Huskies that was just capped off by a miraculous NCAA Championship in 2023, the 21-year-old heads into the draft penciled in as one of, if not the best shooting prospect available.
Throughout his final season at the collegiate level, the First-Team All-Big East selectee registered impressive per-game averages of 16.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.3 assists all while converting on 38.8% of his attempts from beyond the arc.
On top of this, he proved to be a true sniper even with tight coverage as Jordan Hawkins still went on to convert on 40.6% of his contested 3-pointers, according to Stats Perform.
Frankly, it seems the two-guard could prove to be an ideal fit for this Jazz team, as they could use some extra shooting weapons out on the wing.
Despite their seventh-ranked points per game scoring averages of 117.1, Utah only managed to boast middling shooting percentages of 47.3% from the field and 35.3% from deep, ranking 18 and 20 in the league, respectively.
By bringing on Hawkins, their efficiency in both of these departments would only stand to benefit which, in turn, could help continue to guide the team forward.
Along with this, there are also the serious question marks surrounding veteran Jordan Clarkson and his future out in Salt Lake City.
Though we may only be two seasons removed from the 30-year-old taking home the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year award, considering their desire to embark on a youth movement along with his impending free agency, it appears that a breakup this coming offseason is very much a possibility.
With this, should Clarkson jump ship, the Jazz would have a 6-foot-5-sized hole residing within their backcourt rotation that would be in need of filling.
Drafting Jordan Hawkins could be a perfect way to try and replace Utah's second-leading scorer both in the immediate future as well as for the long haul.
There's no denying that will be a plethora of options for the Jazz to consider with the ninth overall selection during the 2023 NBA Draft, but without a doubt, with a little over a month to go, they should strongly consider targeting the UConn star.
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