Utah appeared to find a loophole in the NBA’s player participation policy, but the league sent a message Thursday by hitting the Jazz with a $500,000 fine.
The NBA also docked the Indiana Pacers $100,000 for holding out Pascal Siakam and two other starters in a Feb. 3 game against the Jazz.
The policy was put in place in September 2023 to try to discourage clubs from purposely losing in order to improve their chances with the draft lottery. This year’s draft is considered the strongest in several years, possibly incentivizing clubs like the Jazz to position themselves for a high pick.
The Jazz did not play stars Lauri Markkanen and Jaren Jackson Jr. in the fourth quarter of recent close games. Both played three quarters in recent road games against Miami and Orlando. The Magic rallied from 17 points down to win 120-117, but the Jazz defeated the Heat 115-111.
Jazz coach Will Hardy was asked after the game at Miami whether he considered playing Markkanen and Jackson in the fourth quarter.
“I wasn’t,” Hardy said succinctly.
In fining the Jazz said, the NBA said in its release “these players were otherwise able to continue to play and the outcomes of the games were thereafter in doubt.”
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement the competition committee and team owners will work “to implement further measures to root out this type of conduct.”
“Overt behavior like this that prioritizes draft position over winning undermines the foundation of NBA competition and we will respond accordingly to any further actions that compromise the integrity of our games,” Silver said.
Silver likely will further address the topic when he meets with the media Saturday during All-Star weekend in Los Angeles.
“Agree to disagree ...,” Jazz owner Ryan Smith posted on social media. “Also, we won the game in Miami and got fined? That makes sense ...”
The NBA fined Utah $100,000 last season after the Jazz rested Markkanen in multiple games.
He and the recently-acquired Jackson are the building blocks for the Jazz to try to get back into contention. They traded with Memphis on Feb. 3 for the two-time All-Star and 2023 Defensive Player of the Year.
Jackson, however, will be out for the foreseeable future. He will undergo surgery over the NBA all-star break to remove a growth from his left knee, discovered by an MRI in a physical following the trade. Jackson averaged 22.3 points in 24 minutes per game after joining the Jazz.
Utah has prioritized player development with younger players on its roster at the expense of chasing wins. The front office is motivated to hold onto a first-round pick in this year’s draft that is top-eight protected. Falling outside the bottom eight in the standings means Utah would lose that pick to Oklahoma City.
A number of teams, including the Jazz, would seem to have a great interest in securing a high selection for this year’s draft.
One of those top prospects plays just south of Salt Lake. BYU’s AJ Dybantsa is considered a likely top-three and potentially franchise-changing pick along with Duke’s Cameron Boozer and Kansas’ Darryn Peterson.
But it’s also a deep draft where simply getting into the lottery could mean still getting a shot at a difference-making player.
The Jazz, 18-37 entering Thursday night’s game against Portland, will miss the postseason for the fourth year in a row. This comes after a six-year stretch in which the Jazz made the playoffs each season.
Under the direction of CEO Danny Ainge and his son and team president, Austin, the Jazz ultimately are trying to return to the glory days when they didn’t just make the playoffs. The John Stockton-Karl Malone teams in 1990s were regular championship contenders, making the NBA Finals in 1997 and 1998.
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