Lauri Markkanen has been the talk of the town since the EuroBasket friendlies started. His dominance has been apparent from the jump, re-establishing the kind of player he is when nothing is holding him back. In so doing, his dominance likely means teams will be inquiring about the Utah Jazz star during the 2025-26 season.
NBA Insider Marc Stein outlined Markkanen's situation, which would certainly make anyone think a trade will happen.
"Markkanen now has three 40-point games this summer if you factor in the two he posted during Finland's warmup campaign. By month's end, he'll be back in Salt Lake City with a team that went 17-65 last season and might not be any better this season," Stein wrote.
He then questioned if the Jazz truly are the best situation for Markkanen, and because of such, it likely means Markkanen will have trade suitors.
"Is this what Markkanen signed up for when he inked a five-year contract extension with the Jazz worth nearly $240 million in August 2024? The 7-footer is entering his ninth NBA season and has still yet to play in a single playoff game. Count on Utah's phones ringing often between now and February with trade interest in The Finnisher," Stein wrote.
This was speculated before pretty recently, but now it's in fine print that Markkanen will likely have a trade market for this coming season. The reason why there wasn't last season was because an injury-plagued season along with the Jazz's tank and his extension hurt his value.
However, his impending return to form this coming season is sure to capture the attention of many teams. Even if his contract is pretty expensive, playoff contenders could easily talk themselves into believing Lauri is the guy who could guide them to the promised land.
That also could play a part in why the Jazz would refuse to trade him
Just because something makes sense does not mean it should happen. If Markkanen looks like his old self, and as long as he's happy in Utah (last we checked, he is), what motivation is there to trade him?
While the Jazz's situation looks dire now, maybe that won't be the case by 2027. If the Jazz have prime Markkanen, one of their young players looks like a star in the making, and they draft another one, why not see where that goes?
Many will point out that Markkanen doesn't fit Utah's young timeline, but if the team starts getting results, then the impending trade rumors that are sure to come in the coming months will simply be a bunch of hot air.