To trade or not to trade Lauri Markkanen. That is the question for the Utah Jazz. Everyone and their mother has already heard the notion that the Jazz would be better off without Markkanen, while the Jazz themselves have gone on record declaring that their intention is to keep him. The two latest reports about the Jazz star only fuel more uncertainty about his future in Utah.
Yesterday, Sports Illustrated's Chris Mannix said Utah is "open for business" in regards to a potential Markkanen trade. However, KSL's Ben Anderson revealed that a source told him something very different.
To be fair though, Anderson's report doesn't sound like Utah is necessarily opposed to a Markkanen trade should the right one present itself.
Despite reports today, I was told bluntly that the @utahjazz aren’t trading Lauri Markkanen.
— Ben Anderson (@BensHoops) October 8, 2025
While team needs change and everyone is available for the right price, I don’t get the sense that trading Lauri is a priority.
So this doesn't necessarily contradict what Mannix reported entirely, but it gives a better scope of what the atmosphere of a potential Markkanen trade looks like. However, because these two reports say two different things about where the Jazz stand with Markkanen, it's becoming all the more muddy trying to figure out if he will be in Utah long-term.
Even though the Jazz becoming younger fuels the argument that they are better off without Markkanen, the notion that they might not be so bad not too long from now also fuels the argument that they should keep him around
How Utah does this season likely determines their direction with Markkanen
This season will be all about which Jazz youngsters are keepers, as well as seeing which Markkanen will show up this season. If Markkanen looks good and the Jazz still lose most of their games - this is the most likely scenario to unfold this season - it will all depend on how NBA-ready their young talent is.
If they show that Utah's losing ways won't be around for that much longer, that will convince the Jazz's front office that their best off keeping him. If it goes the other way around, they may come to the opposite conclusion.
The extra wrinkle in all of this rampant Markkanen drama is that if he looks the same way he did last season, then not only would Utah then prefer to get rid of him, but doing so would become even tougher for them. That doesn't seem likely, as Utah has made it clear that fans won't see a repeat of what happened last season.
Because of that, these Markkanen reports will likely only be the beginning of the persistent trade rumors that are sure to circulate from now until either the trade deadline passes or if the Jazz hypothetically decide to cut ties with their only star.
Utah likely prefers to keep Markkanen for when the team becomes a playoff contender again, but right now, there's no timetable for when that will happen.