The Utah Jazz are catching heat lately-and not just from opposing offenses. Their late-game strategy has raised eyebrows across the league.
Instead of outright benching starters or waving the white flag from tip-off, the Jazz have been playing their main guys through the first three quarters, only to sit them in the fourth. It’s a subtle approach to tanking, but make no mistake: it’s tanking all the same.
And while it might not sit well with purists, it’s completely within the rules. More importantly, it’s not unprecedented. In fact, the Jazz are taking a page out of the very playbook that once worked against them.
Let’s rewind to 2012. The Golden State Warriors were staring down a similar dilemma.
Their first-round pick was top-seven protected, meaning if it landed anywhere outside the top seven, it would go to the Utah Jazz as part of a prior trade. As the season wound down, the Warriors realized they had a chance to keep that pick-but only if they dropped enough games to slide into the bottom seven.
So what did they do? They made a calculated move.
Golden State traded Monta Ellis, their leading scorer at the time, for Andrew Bogut-who wasn’t even going to play that season due to injury. Then they proceeded to lose 17 of their final 20 games.
The result? They secured the seventh-worst record, kept their pick, and used it to draft Harrison Barnes.
That pick turned out to be a foundational piece. Barnes, along with a healthy Bogut, became key contributors to the Warriors’ 2015 championship run.
They weren’t the stars-those roles belonged to Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green-but Barnes and Bogut were vital cogs in the machine. Without that strategic tank job, the Warriors might not have had the depth or defensive presence to get over the hump.
And yes, the Warriors later admitted to the strategy. Former executive Travis Schlenk went on record confirming what many suspected all along. It was a chess move, not checkers-and it paid off in rings.
Now, the Jazz find themselves in a nearly identical situation. Their pick is owed to the Oklahoma City Thunder unless it lands in a protected range.
So they’re doing everything they can to make sure it stays in Salt Lake City. That means managing minutes, controlling rotations, and yes, easing off the gas late in games.
It’s not pretty, but it’s smart.
The irony? The Jazz were on the losing end of this same scheme over a decade ago.
That pick they were supposed to get from Golden State ended up staying in the Bay Area. When it finally conveyed the following year, it turned into Trey Burke-a player who never quite lived up to expectations in Utah.
And while it's fun to play the what-if game-what if the Jazz had ended up with Barnes instead?-the reality is that this kind of strategic maneuvering has long been part of the NBA’s underbelly. It’s not about disrespecting the game. It’s about maximizing assets in a league where one draft pick can change everything.
So when fans and pundits call out Utah for “disgracing the sport,” it’s worth remembering the bigger picture. The Jazz aren’t doing anything new.
They’re doing what smart front offices have done for years: protecting their future. It’s not about chasing losses for the sake of it-it’s about avoiding a worst-case scenario that could set the franchise back years.
If anything, the outrage feels selective. When the Warriors did it, they got Barnes, won a title, and kickstarted a dynasty.
When the Jazz do it, they’re suddenly the villains? That’s a double standard.
This all traces back to a trade with Oklahoma City that put Utah in this bind in the first place. If that deal never happens, maybe we’re not even having this conversation.
But here we are. The Jazz are playing the hand they were dealt-and playing it with a clear goal in mind.
Whether the league steps in down the road to close this kind of loophole is another story. But for now, Utah’s just working the system that’s in place. And if history is any indication, that kind of calculated risk can pay off in a big way.