Chris Mannix: Utah Jazz’s Lauri Markkanen will have a ‘strong market’ in trade talks | NBA on NBC
Well, we are still about three months away from the NBA trade deadline, but teams are already starting to survey the landscape to see about these top guys that are going to be available. And one of the names that is already starting to generate interest is Lowry Markin with the Utah Jazz. Lowry Barkin is off to the best start he’s had since the 2022 2023 season in Utah. that season finished with him winning the most improved player award, getting an all-star birth, and he’s having that type of start to this season. 28 points per game, six rebounds, has really been an effective player for a better thanex expected Utah Jazz start. And I talked to marketin just last week about what’s behind it. And he credited a couple of things. One, uh, he really worked on his conditioning this off seasonason. Wanted to get himself into better shape after feeling he needed it after last season. And he also credited the summer he spent playing for the Finnish national team in Euro basket. It’s been a really tough couple of years for Markin in terms of the Jazz struggling and getting motivated to play in these types of games. Finland had its best finish in the Euro basket ever and Markin was a big reason why. So getting to play in that type of environment and compete on that kind of level uh that really refilled the gas tank for Lowry Markin going into this year. Now the Jazz publicly have said that they are not looking to trade Markin. Austin H is the new president of basketball operations there and he has come out and said we believe that when we get to become good Markin is going to be a big reason why he’s going to be part of what we’re doing when we eventually become successful. But that feels like a long way off for a Utah team that is still in the infancy of its rebuild. the last couple of years have been declining in terms of win totals. And you know, Mark and even though he’s young by NBA standards at 28, he is not young by Utah Jazz standards. The Jazz are built around a few guys in their early 20s like Keonte George and their potential future star is Ace Bailey, who is still a teenager. So Larry Markin does not fit that kind of timeline. So the expectation around the league is that over time, you know, as the Jazz start to stumble a little bit, fall to the bottom of that Western Conference bracket, that marketing will become available. Now, he’s not the easiest guy in the world to trade for. He just signed a 5-year contract uh worth about $250 million last summer, but if he’s putting up these kind of numbers, 28.6 six rebound type of numbers. There are going to be uh a lot of teams interested in acquiring him. And when I talked to Will Hardy about what makes marketin so good, one of the things the Jazz coach told me was that he can play with anybody in any system. He doesn’t need the ball in his hands to be successful. He can play on the wing as a cutter. Uh he can be the screener on a screen and roll. There’s a lot of different ways that Lowry marketing could impact the game uh on the offensive end. I’m sure other teams have taken note of that as well. So if it’s say a team like Miami which could certainly use some help in the front court, a team like Detroit which could absolutely loot and use a another scoring option playing opposite Kade Cunningham or even a team like San Antonio which is still trying to keep its powder dry as it looks for a bigger move long term getting Lowry Markin under contract for the next four plus years. That’s a a potentially appealing player to have on your roster moving forward. So right now, Larry Markin off to a good start in Utah. Utah has not bottomed out just yet, but when I talk to people around the league, the expectation is that if and when the Jazz start to really stumble, Markin will become available. And when he does, I think there will be a strong market for him.
Chris Mannix discusses Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen’s hot start to the NBA season as he has quickly emerged as one of the biggest trade assets in the league ahead of the trade deadline. #NBCSports #NBA #UtahJazz #LauriMarkkanen
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Chris Mannix: Utah Jazz’s Lauri Markkanen will have a ‘strong market’ in trade talks | NBA on NBC
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1 comment
Pistons?