National experts react to and grade the Utah Jazz’s 2023 NBA draft selections
The 2023 NBA draft has come and gone and the Utah Jazz selected players at No. 9, No. 16 and No. 28 in Taylor Hendricks (UCF), Keyonte George (Baylor) and Brice Sensabaugh (Ohio State), respectively.
The reaction from the Deseret News’ Utah Jazz writer Sarah Todd was largely positive, for the 6-foot-9, 210-pound Hendricks especially, though the Jazz had both George and Sensabaugh ranked higher on their draft board than where they ultimately were picked, a real positive from the organization’s perspective.
How did the rest of the basketball world react to the Jazz’s three selections, though?
On Taylor Hendricks
“The Utah Jazz to me added a lot,” Wasserman said. “... Taylor Hendricks is your classic 3-and-D forward. To think about Hendricks defense next to Walker Kessler at center, you have to love that front court defense. You have your rim protector and now you have a guy who can be a secondary rim protector and switch out on the perimeter and also stretch the floor and give your team spacing with his 3-point shot.
“His offense will take longer than his defense. Defense is what he will be valued for most. But you like the pick and you like it even more when you know what Utah did at No. 16 and No. 28.”
On Keyonte George
“At No. 16 they go after (Keyonte George). He has his flaws. Maybe not the best decision maker in the world. Shot selection not always there. But he is a bona fide proven shot maker going back to IMG (Academy) and somebody you can expect to provide offensive firepower right away,” Wasserman said. “You just kind of got to coach him the right way. Don’t give him total freedom to play wild.
“Maybe there is a little bit of repetition with Jordan Clarkson. ... You gotta think they’ll give George an opportunity if they took him at No. 16. They may even give him an opportunity to play some point guard. He is a much better passer than the numbers suggest. With him, it comes down to decision making. He threw a number of highlight passes that showcased his secondary playmaking IQ. And we are starting to see teams that don’t need your classic traditional facilitator at the point.”
On Brice Sensabaugh
“One of my favorite prospects in the draft. He slipped, medical reports played a role, but there were also some people who don’t buy the 6-foot-6, 230 pound frame for a wing,” Wasserman said. “He is not a big defender, doesn’t pass much, but I’m buying his offense. I have him ranked higher than George on my board. He was far more efficient.
“A very accurate 3-point shooter. I know he doesn’t look very elusive but with his timing he finds way to get his shot off inside the arc. An efficient three-level scorer. Somebody who can play through contact.”
On Taylor Hendricks
“The first UCF player to be selected in the first round, Hendricks is a prototypical three-and-D forward who can stretch the floor, be a lob threat, protect the rim and be a versatile defender,” Finkelstein writes. “It’s an odd fit with the Jazz organization because they have Lauri Markkanen, but this is a pick that makes sense for the future because he has a bright future.”
Grade: A-”
On Keyonte George
“The third player from IMG Academy (with Black and Walker) to be taken in this draft, he’s got scoring and shot-making ability. He was the player who ran that IMG team,” Finkelstein writes. “He can shoot off the catch or dribble and has potential as a playmaker and passer. Defensively he has to figure out his feet. If you saw George in high school, you buy in on this.”
Grade: B
On Brice Sensabaugh
“I’m not quite as high on Sensabaugh as others. He can really score, but I have a hard time with guys who score but don’t win,” Finkelstein writes. “Ohio State really struggled last year, and Sensabaugh didn’t do much on the defensive end. In the right context, Utah could use him as a movement shooter, but he needs to defend his position and score in a way that impacts winning.”
Grade: B
On Taylor Hendricks
“It’s easy to see Utah’s thought process: How many big, mobile, rim-protecting wings are there in the NBA who are also capable of shooting 40 percent from 3? Like, three? Is even that a bit generous? Pairing Hendricks with Lauri Markkanen on the wings, Utah promises to have an absolutely gargantuan frontcourt without sacrificing much, precisely because of how projectable a 3-and-D player Hendricks promises to be,” write Chau. “Even if he never quite expands his off-the-dribble game, the two things he is extremely good at are invaluable. His end-of-season chase-down block compilation on the Jazz YouTube account ought to be glorious.”
Grade: B+
On Keyonte George
“Jordan Clarkson insurance, perhaps? With Clarkson on the other side of 30 and potentially in want of a clearer winning situation in the near future, the Jazz find his spiritual successor at 16,” Chau writes. “George is as confident a bucket-getter as there is in this draft, with all the counters in his bag to get a pull-up jumper off against the defense. His upside perhaps depends on whether there is untapped athletic growth after some time in Utah’s conditioning program and whether he can grow into a more adept passer out of pick-and-rolls.”
Grade: B+
On Brice Sensabaugh
“Concerns about Sensabaugh’s knees dropped his predraft stock out of the lottery, but his fall could be a huge boon for the Jazz. Sensabaugh’s particular skills as a shooter, especially at his size and with his strength, are among the rarest in the league,” Chau writes. “He is remarkably adept at hitting tough shots, almost inviting contests rather than seeking to evade them. Between Keyonte George and now Sensabaugh, the Jazz are betting on pure hoopers. Getting Sensabaugh this late is a steal.”
Grade: A
On Taylor Hendricks
“The Jazz have to be absolutely thrilled that Taylor Hendricks landed in their laps at 9, a player most had rated higher than this and one whose switchable, 3-and-D game can accommodate a lot of different lineup variations,” Hollinger writes. “The other notable development here is that Cam Whitmore hasn’t been picked yet; there were murmurs that the Villanova forward could slide if Houston didn’t take him at No. 4, and that appears to be the case.”
On Keyonte George
“I wasn’t a huge George fan and had him rated in the 20s rather than the 16th pick. But Utah is another team that, like Atlanta, was definitely looking at adding depth and talent in the backcourt,” Hollinger writes. “Cam Whitmore is the only player left that I had in my top 13, and is sinking like a stone for reasons that aren’t entirely apparent to me but may come out at some point. After that we’re into a different tier, and I’ll say that George isn’t radically different from the others.”
On Brice Sensabaugh
“Brice Sensabaugh at No. 28 to Utah is sensible here,” Hollinger writes. “There were some questions about whether his medicals might cause him to slide but it didn’t seem it dragged him down much. He’s a powerfully wing who can shoot, but his defense, conditioning and distribution all loom as questions.”
On Taylor Hendricks
“Hendricks is that 3-and-D player every team looks for in the draft, and with his added length at 6-9 he can play more of the stretch-4 position,” Peek writes. “He shot the ball well during his one year at UCF (39.4% from 3) and is a two-way scorer who is comfortable taking players off the dribble.”
Grade: A
On Keyonte George
“George is a pure scoring guard who isn’t afraid of the big moments and always wants the ball when the game is on the line or at the end of the shot clock,” Peek writes. “He can get a shot off from anywhere and has a quick burst with the ball in his hands when getting downhill.”
Grade: A
On Brice Sensabaugh
“Sensabuagh is a bully wing who uses his body well at the rim,” Peek writers. “He also shot the ball well from the perimeter — 40.5% from 3-point range.”
Grade: C+
Overall Jazz draft reactions
“A year into retooling their roster following the Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell trades, the Jazz are still in talent-accumulation mode. Thursday provided plenty of it with three first-round picks,” Pelton writes. “I particularly like the fit of Hendricks’ shooting and size in coach Will Hardy’s system, which maximized those skills from Lauri Markkanen and Kelly Olynyk last year.”
“At No. 28, I think Sensabaugh was one of the draft’s better values. Yes, Sensabaugh must broaden his contributions outside of scoring, but his combination of volume and efficiency as a freshman at Ohio State was impressive. In between, Utah took a shot at restoring George’s value after a freshman season at Baylor that fell short of expectations.”
Grade: A-
“The all-upside draft,” Curtis writes. “Exactly what you do when you have all these picks and you’re rebuilding,”
Grade: A-
“The Jazz are in full rebuild mode and they have to be thrilled with how this draft turned out,” Irving writes. “Utah locked up its frontcourt of the future when it selected Hendricks, a prototypical stretch four to play alongside Lauri Markkanen and Walker Kessler.
“It continued to add youthful, high-upside prospects with its other two first-round picks, selecting an NBA-caliber shot-maker in George and a pure scorer in Sensabaugh.”
Grade: A
“Utah entered the 2023 NBA draft with three first round selections, and likely left with one of the best hauls of the night. At No. 9 they took a shot on a high-floor three-and-D player to pair with Lauri Markkanen in the frontcourt, and with their two non-lottery first rounders took shots on potential hyper-scorers with limitless potential.”
“George and Sensabaugh are both highly-touted scorers who don’t use athleticism to thrive, similarly to former Utah star Donovan Mitchell. Even if both don’t work out, they’re bound to find legitimate scoring in one.”
Grade: A+
“The Utah Jazz were a big winner,” O’Connor said. “Balance on the roster, versatile on defense and get some go-to scoring. I love what they did.”
Source: Deseret News
