When Dwyane Wade became a minority owner of the Utah Jazz in 2021, he assured the fans that he would help them build a championship franchise. And while they have been far from that since, he’s still out there reassuring the fans about the franchise, even after their NBA Draft lottery blunder.
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Look, there’s no way around it. The Utah Jazz got hosed in the lottery. Coming in tied with the highest odds of winning the pick at 14% alongside the Hornets and Wizards, the Jazz were expecting to at least walk away in the top 3. Well, chaos ensued, and Utah ended up falling to 5.
Understandably, Jazz fans are furious with this outcome. All of that tanking to not even walk away with a top 3 pick? That’s brutal.
But Wade attempted to calm down the fanbase by taking it to Twitter. “But…… There has been some great players drafted with the 5th pick!” he wrote.
But…… There has been some great players drafted with the 5th pick! pic.twitter.com/o29KhUM9cc
— DWade (@DwyaneWade) May 12, 2025
There have, in fact, been great players selected at the spot in previous years. DeMarcus Cousins, De’Aaron Fox, Trae Young, and Charles Barkley were all drafted fifth overall in their respective drafts. All turned out to be amazing talents.
But, guess who else was selected at number 5 in their Draft? Dwyane Wade! In 2003, the Miami Heat took him with their pick, and he became their franchise player. Wade ended up winning 3 NBA Championships with the Heat, including one as the Finals MVP.
So, maybe the same will happen for Utah. After all, it’s in Wade’s best interest for the Jazz to do well. Since joining the team, he’s seen their valuation rise over $2 billion. Imagine what that number would look like if they could make the playoffs?
As of now, ESPN is projecting Jeremiah Fears out of Oklahoma to be selected by the Jazz fifth overall. It’s a far cry from Cooper Flagg and the potential he would’ve brought to the roster, but Fears is an enticing shot creator who could hit the ground running in the NBA. So, Wade could end up being correct.
At the end of the day, though, the Jazz have had two horrid seasons just to fall out of the top 4 in the lottery. Last year, they had three first-round picks and hardly any of them showed much potential. It’s gotta be a gut punch for the fans. But that doesn’t mean Wade will stop trying to quell them all.
