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Chicago • For the second time in four years, the tallest player at the NBA draft combine is a 7-foot-2 Frenchman.

Would you believe they have the same agent?

Jonathan Jeanne, a 19-year-old from Nancy in Eastern France, bears striking similarities to Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert, particularly in his length. Jeanne is only 2 inches behind Gobert's standing reach and condor-like wingspan (Jeanne's was measured at 7 feet, 61/2 inches this week). At No. 35 in DraftExpress' player rankings, he also has a good chance to hear his name called June 22.

And the differences? "I think I can shoot more than Rudy," Jeanne said.

He means no disrespect. In fact, Jeanne has met 24-year-old Gobert several times through their mutual agent and admires him.

"He just focused on himself and showed a lot of people he can play in the league," he said. "Did some good things in the playoffs."

Jeanne took a meeting with the Jazz as one of the several he has scheduled for the week. He said he was impressed by the meeting, and he likes Utah's track record with big men and international players, including another Frenchman, Boris Diaw.

Like Gobert, Jeanne will have some growing to do. He scored 6 points in his Thursday scrimmage, and the most common refrain he's heard from NBA personnel is that he must get stronger. Weighing in at only 207 pounds (Gobert was 25 pounds heavier at the combine), there's plenty of room to do that.

That being said, he's going to follow advice he got from his predecessor as he goes through the combine and workouts.

"He just told me be strong, they want to see your motor," Jeanne said. "Just be strong and aggressive."

Leaf stands at Ball's defense

T.J. Leaf is a first-round prospect in his own right … just not the one from UCLA getting endless waves of attention.

The 6-11 power forward found himself on the receiving end of questions of Lonzo Ball, his Bruin teammate with whom he enjoyed an all-Pac-12 freshman season. And while the outspoken antics of Ball's father, LaVar, who claimed he could take Michael Jordan one-on-one and recently went to war on sneaker companies, may be overshadowing the son's potential at this point, Leaf is loyal to the end.

"Me and Lonzo are really close off the court and on the court," he said. "We're still very close. We talk all the time. I'm close with him and his family. Obviously his dad is pretty bold in what he says, but he loves him, and he wants what's best for him."

Last week the Balls debuted a new shoe, ZO2s, on their website with a $495 price tag. Leaf said he wouldn't be cashing in for a pair himself.

"I'm not going to be buying one," he said. "If Lonzo wants to send me one, I'll definitely try it on and wear it a little bit, but I'm not going to be buying it."

Michigan man is a Jazz man

Michigan sophomore Moritz Wagner said his coach, John Beilein, has a crush … on the Utah Jazz.

When talking about his meeting with the Jazz recently, the 6-11 forward said, "I know for a fact that Coach B is a huge fan of Utah" and vice versa.

"That's just my impression," Moritz said. "He always talks about Utah. He goes there once in a while, copies a few drills. Stuff like that."

The relationship extends at least as far as the 2014-15 season, when Beilein's son, Patrick, was a player development coach for the Jazz under Quin Snyder. But even since Patrick Beilein went on to take a job at Division II Le Moyne in June 2015, the relationship has apparently continued — Wagner has only been at Michigan since the fall of 2015.

For himself, Wagner seemed to hope that his relationship with the Jazz was just beginning, although he still has the option to return to school.

"It's a great franchise, they represent the whole city and state," he said. "But it's a great culture, like a family, as well as in [Oklahoma City]. I felt very comfortable."

kgoon@sltrib.com Twitter: @kylegoon