DP22

The greatest moment of my life as a Jazz fan is John Stockton’s buzzer-beater against the Rockets in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals, May 29, 1997 (local time). I suspect a great many Jazz fans would say the same. The live call — “John Stockton sends the Utah Jazz to the NBA Finals!!!” — still lives in me, and even now I tear up when I go back and watch that video.

And the second-greatest? The moment Utah landed the second pick at the draft lottery on May 10, 2026 (local time).

In my head, that day was the most important date in recent Jazz history. Every weekend I walked to my neighborhood shrine and prayed, with everything I had, that we would draw at least fourth — and if at all possible, second or better. The 2026 draft was rich with talent: Cam Boozer and Caleb Wilson, projected third and fourth, would have gone first overall in most other years. So for Utah, anything outside the top four and you couldn’t really call the draft a win. Looking at our roster, I thought the perfect fit was Darryn Peterson: a three-level scorer — four, if you count how well he draws fouls — who can handle, make plays, and give you something on defense. With most American analysts projecting AJ Dybantsa first overall, second felt like the best possible outcome for Utah.

Every day, I wanted DP in a Jazz uniform a little more badly. Nearly every day I watched his Jayhawks and Prolific Prep highlights, his workout videos, and got quietly drunk on daydreams of him in a Jazz uniform.

Like most fans, I get my NBA news from the official sites and social media — but I also watch a lot of what people put out on YouTube, purely as entertainment. My favorite by far is a channel called the Hoops Nerd Show. Its host, James Hansen, is well known in the Jazz fan base; he runs hot and occasionally says something outrageous, and it’s absolutely hilarious. More than that, his takes line up with mine on almost every front, which makes every stream something to look forward to. “Yes! Exactly! That’s exactly it!” — I watch feeling like I’ve found an ally. He was on the DP bandwagon for the draft too, so I decided ahead of time: on lottery day, I’d sweat it out with his stream running.

So, lottery day. Sadly there’s no official broadcast in Japan, so I set up a full two-screen operation: a YouTuber’s live feed of the lottery on one, James’s live reaction on the other. A full operation, obviously, requires taking the day off work. I believe the broadcast started around 5:00 in the morning, Japan time. My heart would not settle. James looked nervous on stream too. Same boat, my friend.

And then the lottery began. I thought I might actually throw up. Picks 14 through 10 came in as seeded — so far, so good.

And then:

The ninth pick — Dallas!

Chicago had jumped into the top four. James: “Crap.” Fine. Regroup.

The seventh pick — Sacramento!

Memphis jumped too! This is getting dangerous.

And then —

The sixth pick — Brooklyn!!!! Utah is guaranteed a top-four pick!! The fifth pick — the Clippers. James is screaming.

It was early morning at my house and I couldn’t wake the family, so I screamed into a pillow — considerate of my neighbors, if nothing else. The minimum objective was secured. Now to the top four. Keyonte George, representing the Jazz, moved to the table for the top-four teams. The moment of truth. James: “No Jazz!! No Jazz!!”

The fourth pick — Chicago!! The third pick — Memphis!!

We did it. We actually did it!! Second or better, confirmed!

I couldn’t help myself: “AAAAAHHHHHH!!!! YESSSS!!!!” James was screaming right along with me.

And the second pick — Utah!!!

God, it was perfect. Four years of misery, finally paid off.

Like I said, I’d taken the day off, so once I’d caught my breath I headed to the shrine in the early morning light. The customary offering is ten yen. On this occasion I put in a thousand.

“Thanks to you, we drew the second pick. We are ready to welcome Darryn Peterson. All that remains is for the Jazz front office to make the right decision. Truly, thank you for today.”

From that day I never doubted for a second that the Jazz would take DP, and I set about designing my own DP T-shirts and caps. The number was already taken by Filipowski, but trusting he would hand it over, I made a “DP22” logo. On the back of the shirt: “A New Chapter Begins.” A one-man party. My family was not impressed.

After that came the noise — speculation that Utah might trade up for AJ, the fact that DP skipped a Utah workout — but on June 23, the Jazz officially selected Darryn Peterson with the second overall pick. Naturally I went to the shrine that morning too, to pray the Jazz would choose correctly; naturally I took the day off; and I watched the moment on two screens, the NBA feed and James’s stream. Strangely, none of the tension from lottery night was there. I imagine it was the same for James.

In his post-draft interview, DP said the celebration ended that day and that he wanted to get straight back in the gym for the Jazz as an NBA player. Asked about his goals: “Play 82 games, and make the playoffs.” The ideal answer from a professional. The combine and Summer League left me certain of his ability, too. He is going to become a wonderful player, as a person and as a talent. With Keyonte George, Ace Bailey and Darryn Peterson, the future core of this team is assembled. This is genuinely the dawn of a new era for the Jazz. Which is to say: I can’t wait for the season to start.

And afterwards, Filipowski did hand number 22 over to DP — so the DP22 shirt and cap designs didn’t go to waste after all.