Ace Bailey is making a major change before even playing in his first career NBA game.
The Utah Jazz rookie Bailey is parting ways with his controversial manager Omar Cooper, Tony Jones of The Athletic reported on Tuesday. Bailey is now reportedly in the process of seeking new representation.
A 19-year-old forward out of Rutgers, Bailey was the No. 5 overall pick by the Jazz in this year’s NBA Draft. But his transition into the NBA has already come with a whole lot of drama.
Before Bailey was even drafted, he was reportedly threatening interested NBA teams in the hopes of potentially steering his way elsewhere. The Jazz were ultimately unfazed by Bailey’s threats however and drafted him against his wishes at No. 5. That led to a tense standoff between the two sides in which Bailey initially refused to report to Utah (before eventually relenting and doing so).
The general consensus was that Bailey’s agent Cooper had supposedly been the source of all of the bad advice to the teenager. Cooper also sparked backlash by posting a video of himself showing off his chains and an expensive watch after Bailey was drafted.
At one point, the Jazz were even slated to hire Cooper’s son in a coaching role for their team (before the NBA stepped in and prevented that from happening). Now Bailey, who averaged 17.6 points and 7.2 rebounds per game as a freshman for Rutgers last season, is putting an end to the drama and formally dropping Cooper as his manager.
