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The Utah Jazz missed out on the postseason for the first time since the 2015-16 season. The Jazz were in the playoff race for much of the 2022-23 campaign, but a 2-8 stretch to end the season sealed their fate. Utah finished the regular season with a 37-45 record, just the 12th-best in the Western Conference.
The Jazz's underwhelming season didn't necessarily come as a surprise, though. After all, Utah traded two of its best players, Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell, in the summer of 2022 and was clearly shifting towards a rebuild.
But if there's one positive takeaway from the Jazz failing to qualify for the postseason for the first time in over half a decade, it's that they have the 2023 NBA Draft to look forward to. And the Jazz project to be one of the busier teams on draft night, as they own three-first round picks. Specifically, the Jazz own the ninth pick, the 16th pick, and the 28th pick.
Understandably, Jazz fans are most excited to see who the team will pick ninth overall, as it's the team's highest pick in this draft. But there are plenty of players projected to fall in the pick-16 range who could make an impact for the Jazz right away. With all of that said, here is a last-minute prediction for who the Utah Jazz will select with the 16th overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft:
Last-minute 2023 NBA Draft Jazz prediction for No. 16 pick
Bilal Coulibaly
Coulibaly is one of the more intriguing international prospects in his draft class. Firstly, he has terrific size and length for a wing. Coulibaly stands at 6'7″ with a 7'3″ wingspan. For comparison, defensive stalwart OG Anunoby has nearly identical measurables to Coulibaly, as he is 6'7″ with a 7'2″ wingspan.
Coulibaly uses his length to his advantage on the defensive end, as he consistently pestered opposing players overseas. Thanks to his blend of impressive physical attributes and athleticism, Coulibaly is a switchable/versatile defender who has the potential to defend both guards and wings at the next level.
Coulibaly's defining defensive skill is his ability to come up with steals. His active hands and basketball IQ allowed him to average a whopping 2.56 steals per contest across 16 games in France's LNB Espoirs league in the 2022-23 season.
But for all the good that Coulibaly brings to the table on the defensive end, he's not without his flaws. Namely, Coulibaly's offensive game is still very much a work in progress. For one, he's a sub-par three-point shooter. He converted just 32.4% of his three-point attempts in the LNB Espoirs league this season.
Also, Coulibaly isn't much of a shot creator at this stage. His ball-handling ability is shaky, so he didn't show a whole lot of promise overseas as a do-it-yourself scorer.
However, despite Coulibaly's limited offensive repertoire, his fantastic defensive potential will be too alluring for the Jazz to pass up with the 16th overall pick. It's not hyperbole to say that Coulibaly is one of the better international wing defender prospects in recent memory.
Right now, the Utah Jazz really only have one elite defensive player on their roster, and that's second-year center, Walker Kessler. But after the 2023 NBA Draft on Thursday, the Jazz will have two elite defenders, as they will select French wing Bilal Coulibaly with the 16th overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft.
