How does Lauri Markkanen sound?
Golden State is “trying to be aggressive” on the trade market, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, and it is specifically targeting Markkanen, a 27-year-old forward who stands 7-feet tall, made the All-Star Game in 2023 and has averaged 24.5 points on 63.6% true shooting in two years with the Utah Jazz.
“Utah’s not sure it wants to trade him, but they have to listen,” Wojnarowski said on SportsCenter. “They’ve been listening. And a lot of the teams who lost out on Mikal Bridges from Brooklyn have transferred over to trying to see if they can land Lauri Markkanen out of Utah. Golden State is one of those teams.”
Haynes said that the San Antonio Spurs have been involved, too, but emphasized that Golden State’s pursuit has been more serious than anybody else’s. According to HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto, the Sacramento Kings, Minnesota Timberwolves and New Orleans Pelicans have also expressed interest in Markkanen, but Utah is believed to be asking for “a trade package similar to what the Knicks gave up to acquire Mikal Bridges.” You might remember that Bridges cost New York five first-round picks (four of which are unprotected), an unprotected pick swap and a second-rounder. (The Athletic’s Kelly Iko reported that the Houston Rockets are not going after Markkanen because they think the price is “exorbitant.”)
Also like Bridges, Markkanen is signed to a below-market contract. He’ll make $18 million this coming season, the last year of a four-year deal that he signed (as part of a sign-and-trade that sent him to the Cleveland Cavaliers) after a season in which the Chicago Bulls demoted and deemphasized him. For a team like Golden State that is hard-capped at the first apron, this represents a rare opportunity, provided that Utah will actually part with him: Markkanen’s current salary is low enough to make acquiring him feasible, and it can realistically retain him with Bird Rights a year from now.
The Jazz, naturally, could just keep Markkanen and re-sign him themselves. They could even potentially lock him up on a long-term deal this summer — as of Aug. 6, they will be able to use their cap space to bump his 2023-24 salary up to as much as $42.3 million and extend his contract off of that number (for up to four years and $202 million). On his next deal, though, Markkanen won’t have as much trade value as he does today, particularly if they can create a bidding war. Utah is worlds away from win-now mode, so, even though Markkanen is just approaching his prime, he could be worth more as somebody else’s missing piece than the Jazz’s centerpiece.
