The day after teammate John Tonje was drafted to the Utah Jazz with the 53rd pick of the 2025 NBA Draft, it was reported that Steven Crowl was signed to an NBA Exhibit 10 contract with the same team. The Utah Jazz now have three former Wisconsin Badgers in Tonje, Crowl, and Micah Potter. There may become a huge incentive to become a Jazz fan, at least loosely, when the Badgers are on the floor.
After the news broke, current star Wisconsin guard, John Blackwell, posted to his social media, "Stevo and JT!! I'm there fs." Recognizing both Crowl and Tonje's deals with the Jazz ("fs" is short for "for sure"), saying he will be there for sure is not a prediction of the team that will draft him, but more of a statement of going to visit and check out their games.
Stevo and JT!! I’m there fs https://t.co/FdodJ8Ct66
— John Blackwell (@_Johnblackwell1) June 27, 2025
Steven Crowl has a lot to prove to actually be on the Utah Jazz with only an Exhibit 10 contract
The hard part is that Crowl may never actually play for Jazz, as Exhibit 10 deals are the best example of "prove-it" deals that the NBA offers. It's similar to an NFL team signing a player to a UDFA reserves/futures contract. There's a lot of "try to earn your spot" energy in these contracts. So while it's huge news for Crowl, it's not quite a sure pathway to NBA minutes yet.
This doesn't mean he won't make it on the Jazz, there are plenty of players that break out of the Exhibit 10 contracts into two-way contracts or even standard NBA deals. Fred VanFleet is a good example of a player who used the contract for his own advantage and made his way into the NBA in a fringe-star way.
Ultimately, it shows that there's enough of an NBA interest in Crowl. After working out with tons of NBA teams, it's good to see the Jazz decide to take a flyer on him and see if he can provide something for them either now or in the future.