On the eve of the 2025 NBA Draft, Jazzland is abuzz with talk of Bailey, Fears, Edgecombe, Maluach, and Knueppel. One of those players is likely to play in the Salt Lake City Summer League in about two weeks, and then serve as a tank commander (?) during the 2025-26 season. The Jazz, though, have one more first-round pick and two seconds.

It’s not impossible to find a good player in the second round. After all, Kyle Korver, Paul Millsap, Mo Williams, Jordan Clarkson, Mehmet Okur, and Bryon Russell are all 2nd-rounders who once played well for the Jazz. However, for every Millsap there are ten players such as Olivier Hanlan, Justin Wright Foreman, Joel Bolomboy, and Ante Tomic.

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The draft—and especially the days before the draft—are a time to speculate. So, let’s take a look at one of the players who will likely be available at the #53 spot, Vladislav Goldin. Goldin was born in Nalchik, Russia, where he began his athletic career as a wrestler. Once it was clear that he was going to keep growing, he switched to basketball, which eventually landed him a spot with Texas Tech, then Florida Atlantic University, (Cinderella Final Four run) and finally the University of Michigan.

At 24, he’s a little old for an NBA prospect, but, as the old saying goes, you can’t teach height. You also can’t teach wingspan. He is 7’0 barefoot with a 7’5” wingspan, which is comparable to Duke bigman Khaman Maluach. At Michigan, he averaged 16.6 points, 7 rebounds, one assist, and 2.3 turnovers. He attempted to develop an outside game as well, shooting 33% from beyond the arc, something he never did at Texas Tech or FAU.

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For comparison, Khaman Maluach averaged 8.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, .5 assists, and .8 turnovers. Now, Maluach played about six fewer minutes and had a smaller USG%—about 6% less—than Goldin. He also played with the consensus #1 pick, and Goldin did not.

I already mentioned his size. A true 7-footer with a positive wingspan, Goldin is one of the best finishers in the draft, boasting a 69.3% finish rate in the halfcourt and 63% eFG (notably behind Maluach’s 72%). He is a deterrent in the paint, and can play facing the basket or with his back to the basket.

He seems to have the tools to make it in the NBA. Will he be a star? No. Will he be a starter? Again, probably not. Could he anchor the defense and cause problems inside for opposing benches for 15 minutes a night? Yes, I think so.

In today’s era of ball-dominant guards, it is important for big men to both deter opposing guards from driving into the paint and space the floor so that their own guards have room to drive. Vladislav Goldin is a traditional big who didn’t attempt a single three point shot in his first 117 college games. During his (super) senior season, he began to supplement his decent midrange game with a few shots per game from deep, going 11/33 (33%).

While he is capable of making three-pointers, it takes him awhile to get the shot off, and nearly all of his opportunities are either wide-open or catch-and-shoot.

His forward and lateral quickness leave something to be desired, which is why I don’t believe he will ever be a legitimate NBA starter. Furthermore, he is a below-average passer. As I mentioned before, his AST/TOV ratio is bad—at Michigan, he averaged 1.1 assists per game and 2.3 turnovers. That is worrisome, and is probably one reason why he has fallen so far down the draft boards.

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At 53, I say that he’s worth a look. He’s not going to produce as much as Paul Millsap, let alone Nikola Jokic. But he could be a nice 10th-man, which is usually about all you can ask for in a late 2nd-rounder. I will not be over the moon if the Jazz pick him up, but I also won’t be disappointed. Even at 24, there’s a chance he could develop into someone like Ivica Zubac or Isaiah Hartenstein.

Of course, there’s always a chance that the Jazz could trade this pick before or during the draft, and this will all be pointless. But hey, that’s the NBA offseason!