Utah
Jazz Insider Dumps Cold Water on Bronny James Draft Buzz
Buzz continues to surround the Utah Jazz as we stand just over a month from the kick off the 2024 NBA Draft.
And while the Jazz hold two first-rounders to start the draft at pick 10 and 28, a large chunk of the rumors revolving around Utah have been based on their use of their 32nd pick in the second. USC guard and son of LeBron James, Bronny James, was the most recent guard mentioned to have potential interest from the Jazz, effectively generating some hype surrounding the 19-year-old in coming to SLC.
The report inevitably made for some fun discussions of what possibilities next season could hold for the Jazz, but newly uncovered developments have seemingly brought the Bronny to Utah train to a halt.
Despite some chatter linking the Jazz with James heating up at the combine earlier this week, Sarah Todd of Deseret News reports that those rumors might be a whole lot of nothing.
“I looked into this as much as possible and although James impressed during the combine, it doesn’t seem like the Jazz are interested,” Todd said. “A number of team sources seemed confused about where the Yahoo Sports report had come from, with one source telling the Deseret News that the name Bronny James has never come up in any draft conversations among Jazz decision makers.”
Instead of looking towards the direction of Bronny towards the top of the first, the Jazz will likely turn their direction elsewhere. The USC product came out with a nice combine performance to boost his stock deeper into the second round, but Utah might not be his eventual landing spot.
In the event the Jazz don’t end up finding a prospect that they love at the top of the second, keep an eye out for a trade involving the pick. Danny Ainge remained confident that the team would remain aggressive this summer in a pursuit to improve this squad for next season, and the right move surrounding some picks down the board can effectively bring that.
All draft answers will be delivered for the Jazz when the big night officially arrives on June 26th.
Follow Inside The Jazz on Facebook and X.
Subscribe to YouTube for breaking Jazz news videos and live streams!
Utah
What Utah transfer Terrence Brown brings to the table for UNC
Utah transfer Terrence Brown gives UNC a dynamic scoring guard with playmaking upside.
Utah transfer Terrence Brown, one of the top combo guards in the portal, has committed to North Carolina, giving the Tar Heels a high-scoring backcourt addition for next season.
Brown chose UNC over Kansas, Kentucky, Oregon, Ole Miss and USC. He is ranked the No. 8 combo guard and No. 38 overall transfer by 247Sports.
The 6-foot-3 rising senior averaged 19.9 points, 3.8 assists and 2.4 rebounds for Utah last season while shootingt 45.3% from the field and 32.7% from 3-point range. He earned All-Big 12 honorable mention.
His ability to both score and create for others makes him a natural candidate to replace former Tar Heels combo guard Seth Trimble.
Here is a full breakdown of what Brown brings to the tables.
What to be excited about
For starters, Brown is a high-level scorer. He scored 20 or more points 18 times and 25 or more points nine times last season. North Carolina’s backcourt had a player score 20 or more points only five times last season. Trimble accounted for four of those games, and Bogavac had one in UNC’s regular-season finale against Clemson.
Brown has shown he can be an effective passer as well. He posted a 27.7 assist percentage, an increase of 6.4 points from the previous season. That number rose to 28.1 percent in conference play, eighth-best in the Big 12.
He has shown he can be a capable defender, averaging 1.7 steals per game throughout his career. His career best was 2.2 steals per game in 2024-25 with Fairleigh Dickinson, which led the Northeast Conference.
What to be concerned about
The only concern UNC should have with Brown is his ability to play with players just as good as, and possibly better than, he is. The worry should not be that he may intentionally ballhog. In fact, he may simply try to do too much.
Because he was on two mediocre programs such as FDU and Utah, Brown had free rein to shoot himself out of slumps as he was the No. 1 scorer and the primary ballhandler. The last two seasons, Brown has ranked in the top 15 in usage rate and has averaged 16.4 and 15.4 shots per game. While his offensive rating improved at Utah, going from 96.8 to 108.1, his effective field-goal percentage was still below 50 percent at 48.6.
He will have to learn not to put too much pressure on himself as he plays alongside teammates such as Neoklis Avdalas, Jarin Stevenson and possibly Henri Veesaar, if Veesaar returns to Chapel Hill.
How He Fits at UNC
Brown should fit in just nicely in Chapel Hill and will provide a much-needed boost to its backcourt.
With UNC’s stronger supporting cast and a coach with a championship pedigree in Michael Malone, Brown will be pushed to process the game faster. He will need to read the floor quickly, use his first step to collapse the defense or kick out to shooters, and he could form an intriguing pick-and-roll duo with both Avdalas and Veesaar.
Brown’s athleticism could be a difference-maker at UNC. All he has to do is improve his shot selection and overall efficiency.
Follow us @TarHeelsWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of North Carolina Tar Heels news, notes and opinions.
Utah
California man in Utah for National Guard duties accused of soliciting ‘teen girl’
SALT LAKE CITY — A California man in Utah, as part of his duties with the National Guard, is accused of trying to solicit sex from a young teenager.
Joshua Ruben Rodriguez, 29, of Fresno, was charged Tuesday in 3rd District Court with attempted rape of a child, a first-degree felony, and enticement of a minor, a second-degree felony.
The investigation began when an agent with the Utah State Bureau of Investigation posed as a 13-year-old girl on a “popular social media site … in an attempt to locate and apprehend adults attempting to have sexual contact with children,” according to charging documents.
On April 16, Rodriguez sent the agent a message — believing he was talking to a teen girl — that stated, “I’ll be direct with you, I would like to get to know you and (have sex with) your mind into a daze to where you feel like a woman,” according to charging documents.
When the “girl” asked if he had a problem with her age, Rodriguez replied, “I don’t have a problem with your age,” the charges state.
The agent told Rodriguez to meet at an apartment complex in Salt Lake County where the girl lived, claiming her mother would be gone. When Rodriguez arrived, he was taken into custody, the charges state.
“(Rodriguez) does not have ties to Utah. He is a resident of Fresno, California. (He) was in town as part of his military service with the California National Guard,” prosecutors stated in charging documents while requesting he be held without bail pending trial.
Utah
One hospitalized in St. George after rollover crash south of Utah-Arizona border
ST. GEORGE, Utah (KUTV) — One person was hospitalized at the St. George Regional Hospital after a car rolled and caught fire just south of the Utah-Arizona border.
The Beaver Dam and Littlefield Fire Department in Arizona said its crews responded to the crash near the Black Rock Road exit – roughly two miles south of the state border – on Sunday night.
Upon arrival, crews put out the car fire and found the driver had left the scene. A single occupant, who was able to get out of the car on their own, was transported to the hospital by a Beaver Dam ambulance.
MORE | Crashes
Their condition has not been publicly released.
Details on what led to the crash and the condition of the driver were not immediately available.
The Beaver Dam and Littlefield Fire Department said law enforcement investigated the scene.
BE THE FIRST TO COMMENT
_____
-
Iowa4 minutes agoWrongful death suit filed for prospective Univ. of Iowa student killed in car crash
-
Kentucky16 minutes agoSadiqa Reynolds removed from U of L board, as Kentucky Senate doesn’t confirm her
-
Louisiana22 minutes agoMom whose 3 children were killed in Louisiana mass shooting still has bullet lodged in face — and sometimes thinks kids are alive
-
Maine28 minutes agoThese are the Best Outdoor Dining Joints in Maine, According to Locals
-
Maryland34 minutes agoU.S. Air Force reverses course on retiring A-10 Thunderbolt planes, making way for potential Maryland return
-
Michigan40 minutes agoUS supreme court sides with Michigan in its fight to shut down ageing pipeline
-
Massachusetts46 minutes agoHeavy police presence due to ‘ongoing incident’ in Tewksbury
-
Minnesota52 minutes agoTikToker’s ban from St. Paul parks lifted after appeal, agent says