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Just days after being selected No. 5 overall by the Utah Jazz in the 2025 NBA Draft, Ace Bailey is at the center of growing speculation regarding his early involvement with the team.
ESPN’s Brian Windhorst provided a significant update Friday on SportsCenter, noting Bailey’s absence from team activities and hinting at underlying tensions between the rookie’s camp and the Jazz front office.
Windhorst reported that Bailey did not travel to Utah alongside fellow Jazz first-round pick Walter Clayton Jr., who has already arrived and begun engaging with team staff.
While the Jazz have publicly downplayed the absence, attributing it to their policy of allowing players to briefly return home, Windhorst emphasized that Bailey is expected to report by Monday for the start of Summer League training camp.
“He did not go to Utah today. Walter Clayton Jr., their other first-round draft pick did go to Utah today. Now the Jazz have said that’s not an issue. They allow their new players to go home,” Windhorst said. “But he will be expected to be there on Monday when their Summer League training camp begins, so let’s see.”
Windhorst also highlighted the firm stance taken by Utah’s top executives, suggesting there will be little room for negotiation.
“The one thing I will tell you with confidence… Danny Ainge and his son Austin are not going to bend here. They’re not going to get pushed around. They do not care what this situation might bring,” Windhorst said.
“So the idea that they are going to pressure the Jazz is something that I don’t think will be successful for Ace Bailey and his operation, but let’s see how the next 72 hours plays out.”
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“[Ace] did not go to Utah today. Walter Clayton Jr., their other first-round draft pick, did go to Utah today… but he will be expected to be there on Monday when [the Jazz's] Summer League training camp begins.”
Brian Windhorst on Ace Bailey 🗣pic.twitter.com/d2w0LPBoQ9
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) June 27, 2025
Ace Bailey’s delayed arrival and predraft stance raise questions for Jazz
Bailey had initially expressed enthusiasm about joining the Jazz, calling it a “great opportunity” to showcase his talent to fans in Utah during a postdraft interview with NBC.
However, ESPN’s Jonathan Givony and Tim Bontemps previously reported that Bailey’s representatives informed at least one team drafting in the top five that he would not report if selected, sparking debate about his openness to joining specific franchises.
When asked about public skepticism over his fit in Utah, Bailey responded, “I can control what I can control… They feel how they feel.”
Bailey’s agent, Omar Cooper, defended the handling of his predraft process and downplayed suggestions that it was unorthodox.
“Every NBA team watched him work out in Chicago,” Cooper said. “He did 18 interviews. Everyone got their medical. They watched him run and jump. They got his measurements… There is nothing uncommon about how Ace Bailey’s predraft process was handled.”
Bailey, 18, is a 6-foot-10 guard who averaged 17.6 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks per game at Rutgers. His first official appearance in a Jazz uniform could come during the NBA Summer League in early July, pending his arrival at training camp.
