Utes point guard Justin Bibbins to audition for the Utah Jazz

All-Pac-12 first-teamer and Utes point guard Justin Bibbins is set to work out with the Utah Jazz ahead of the 2018 NBA Draft.

The 2017-18 University of Utah Runnin’ Utes basketball season was a bit of a mixed bag. At 23-12 overall (11-7 in conference), the Utes were one of the Pac-12’s better squads. However, they flopped in the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 Tournament against Oregon and failed to secure an NCAA tourney bid. Finally, they were upset in the NIT title game by Penn St.

Nevertheless, point-man Justin Bibbins had a banner year in his lone season on the Hill. Now, he turns his attention to the pro game. To that end, he’ll be back in Salt Lake City on Sunday for a pre-draft workout with the Utah Jazz.

Bibbins’ Jazz workout comes one week after he auditioned for Magic Johnson and the LA Lakers.

Joining him at the Zions Bank Basketball Campus will be the following prospects —

• Aussie guard William McDowell-White (6-5, 185 lbs, age 20) — Spent his season in the Basketball Bundesliga with Brose Bamberg. Put up 12.8 points and 6.8 boards per game for their farm team.
• Purdue wing Vincent Edwards (6-8, 225 lbs, age 22) — Two-time All-Big Ten selection and four-year starter for the Boilermakers. Averaged 14.6 points and 7.4 boards per contest and boasts a collegiate career 3-point percentage of 39.2.
• French forward Amine Noua (6-8, 200 lbs, age 21) — Actually manned the pivot for ASVEL of the Pro A League. He averaged 10 points and 4.5 boards while hitting 34 percent of his triples.
• Marshall big man Ajdin Penava (6-9, 220 lbs, age 21) — Averaged 15.6 points and 8.5 rebounds per game while leading the NCAA with 134 total blocked shots. Also led the Thundering Herd to its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 31 years.
• Lincoln-Memorial big man Emanuel Terry (6-9, 225 lbs, age 22) — D-II player that threw down one of the sickest dunks you’ll ever see.

Bibbins is the headliner locally, though, which should come as no surprise. After transferring from Long Beach State, he led the Utah Utes in scoring (just under 15 points per game) and assists (at nearly five per game). He also connected on 44 percent of his 6.1 3-point attempts per game and was an 87 percent foul shooter.

Without question, he was one of the best players in the Pac-12 during the 2017-18 campaign (he was an All-Pac-12 First Team selection). To say he was important to the Utes last season is a massive understatement. The team probably doesn’t qualify for any level of postseason action without his efforts.

Nevertheless, his NBA prospects are probably pretty slim out of the gate. Standing at 5-foot-8 and 150-pounds, Bibbins is diminutive to the extreme. Still, he’s attacking his potential transition to the next level full-on. He’s signed on with the agency Life SME and has been training hard for the last month in preparation for workouts.

He’s a good candidate to play in summer league, after which he could go the G-League route (perhaps with the Salt Lake City Stars?). Bibbins could also ply his trade abroad while he works toward following in the footsteps of guys like Spud Webb, Muggsy Bogues, Earl Boykins and Nate Robinson in the Association.

One thing is certain: when you can shoot the ball like he can, you’re going to get paid somewhere.

• Published on 06/10/2018 at 8:55 AM MDT
• Last updated on 06/10/2018 at 8:55 AM MDT