"Stop being a diva and HOOP!": Fans react as Ace Bailey misses trip to Utah amid holdout speculation

Rutgers guard Ace Bailey was one of the top prospects in the 2025 NBA Draft class. However, the 6'10" college star slipped down to the fifth pick before the Utah Jazz selected him. Reports from ESPN leading up to and during the draft suggest that the prospect had a few teams in mind that he wanted to play for, but the Jazz was not one of them.

Bailey turned heads when he canceled a private workout he had scheduled with the Philadelphia 76ers, who picked V.J. Edgecombe with the third pick. NBA Draft experts suggested that it was part of his plan to intentionally hurt his draft stock so he could go to his preferred destination. Unfortunately for him, it did not work. That does not mean he is done sending his message though.

ESPN's Brian Windhorst reported after the draft that Bailey did not join fellow Jazz first round pick Walter Clayton Jr. on a flight to Utah to be introduced to the team. Jazz general manager Danny Ainge and the front office normally give their players some time to get their affairs in order before reporting to the team, but they want him to be in Utah preparing for summer league play by Monday.

However, Bailey's dissatisfaction with how the draft went could cause him to try and hold out, according to Forbes NBA reporter Evan Sidery. Fans reacted to that news on social media, criticizing the prospect for being so dramatic. One fan compared him to Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker, who has played with the team for almost a decade despite their dysfunction.

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Ace Bailey's agent reportedly told teams in the top 5 not to draft him

Bailey did a lot to try and push himself down the draft board in the months preceding Wednesday's opening round. When bailing on his workout with the 76ers and mishandling some pre-draft interviews did not work, he and his agent tried something else. According to ESPN's Jonathan Givony and Tim Bontemps, Bailey's agent told at least one team in the top five to not pick him.

It is not known which team Bailey's representatives reached out to specifically. Unfortunately, the strategy did not workout and Ainge took him with the fifth pick anyway. The long-time Celtics GM is not easily budged by his players to stray from the norm, so his new rookie could have a hard time getting his way. For now, Bailey does not seem to care about fans' reaction to him being in Utah.

"I can control what I can control," Bailey said. "They feel how they feel. But my team and me, me focusing on basketball and them doing what they're doing, so it happens."

For better or worse, Bailey is now an NBA player and while start his career with Utah. If the drama between him and the Jazz continue, though, he could be held out of games and suspended by the team. However, Ainge has the power to control Bailey's future and could simply refuse to let him go until he comes around.

Edited by Zachary Howell