What drama? Ace Bailey’s representative says he is ‘thrilled’ to play for Jazz, expected to report Saturday

It was a lot of sound and fury, signifying nothing.

Ace Bailey did not work out for the Utah Jazz — or any NBA team — in the run-up to the 2025 NBA Draft as his agent tried to steer him to his reportedly preferred East Coast destinations of Washington D.C. or Brooklyn. It didn’t work out as planned, and the Utah Jazz selected Bailey with the No. 5 pick — a team in need of high-end talent in its rebuild took the player with the highest ceiling still available. As they should.

For 48 hours after the pick, there had been minimal contact between Bailey and the Jazz, and — unlike the team’s other first-round draft pick, Walter Clayton Jr. — he has yet to report to Utah, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst reported Friday. That led to raised eyebrows and plenty of online speculation.

However, by Friday afternoon, all speculation proved moot — Bailey is expected to report to the Jazz on Saturday, according to ESPN’s draft expert Jonathan Givony.

That came a few hours after one of Bailey’s representatives, president of GSE Worldwide Andrew Witlieb, went on Front Office Sports’ show Friday and threw cold water on all the rumors, saying Bailey is “thrilled” to play in Utah.

“We think this is a great situation for him, basketball-wise,” Witlieb said, noting that Bailey would get a lot of touches and shots with the Jazz. Witlieb added that not working out for teams was not a big deal — there was plenty of film on him from Rutgers’ season and the NBA Draft Combine, where the Jazz had interviewed him and obtained his medical records. He noted that teams drafting players who did not work out for them is common.

Bailey is expected to participate in training camp for the Utah and then the Las Vegas Summer Leagues, with practices beginning Monday. There was never going to be any real drama until that deadline passed, it was all just words until then.

Bailey has factions within his representation, which can lead to differing messaging.

Whether or not Bailey is happy about being picked by Utah, he and his reps have no other option than to show up. The Jazz hold his draft rights, and anyone who thinks threatening to play overseas (the Jazz would retain his rights) or not reporting is going to get Danny Ainge and the Jazz organization to buckle and trade him has not been paying attention — the Jazz will not back down. Bailey is going to play for the Jazz or nobody else in the NBA. Bailey’s only option to change teams would be to sit out a full year of basketball and re-enter the draft, which would hurt his draft stock while he spent a year not getting paid. (Utah would have the full support of the league office and other owners in any showdown, they do not want to create a situation where rookie players can force their way to the destination they desire.)

All of that appears moot. The expectation in league circles has always been that Bailey would be there by Monday, with the full support of his representation (who don’t get paid unless he starts getting paid). There will be no drama, and the only question will be whether Bailey can play up to his potential working with coach Will Hardy and staff.