The Utah Jazz's offseason has made an elephant in the room look even bigger. With the team selling off all of their veterans, sans Lauri Markkanen, there's a strong belief that Markkanen is next. Zach Lowe confronted this ever-growing elephant, but also acknowledges that it will take time before the Jazz find a trade.
On "The Zach Lowe Show," he explained what would have to be done to lead to a Markkanen trade.
"I have not one eye, but both eyes set semi-permanently looking in the direction of Lauri Markkanen, who immediately became the most interesting trade candidate in the league when Utah announced to the world, 'Yeah, we're selling everybody off.'
"Look, they extended him. He's making a lot of money. He's got to rehab his value a little bit. He didn't play enough last year. He missed a whole bunch of games, as did everyone with the Jazz, but I'm staring over there like constantly," Lowe said.
What Lowe is suggesting is that if Markkanen restores his value, it may not be long before he's as good as gone in Utah. On the one hand, the last time intel came out about where the team stands with Markkanen, it was clear that the Jazz currently have no desire to trade him. Furthermore, that's been the story ever since he extended with Utah.
On the other hand, it wouldn't be a surprise if they did. While Utah made it clear last offseason that they were leaning towards a rebuild, they made it clear this offseason that they were embracing it completely. This stage of Markkanen's career will make him stand out like a sore thumb on a team full of young talent.
But for the time being, the Jazz see him as part of the future even he is presently in his prime. One of the more fascinating subplots for next season will be the Markkanen watch.
The two factors that could change Utah's mind
Again, for all we know, Markkanen is playing out the rest of his prime as a Jazzman, and if Utah becomes a playoff contender again in a short enough time, they'll look smart for believing he is part of their core long-term. But if they don't, and this rebuild takes its sweet time to turn into something meaningful, Utah could change its mind, but it would depend on two factors.
1. How long would it take to restore his value completely?
As Lowe said and as every Jazz fan knows, Markkanen's trade value took a major hit as he's being paid like a franchise player and is coming off his worst season in Utah. If the Jazz traded him now, they'd get pennies on the dollar for him.
If the plan is to see Markkanen look like himself again, it may take some time for that to happen. Teams will want to see him maintain that consistency for a season before investing in him. It may take Markkanen no time at all to remind everyone just how good he is, but it might take him a few months.
The Jazz have committed to the tank again, so if Markkanen proves immediately how good he is, that could be a problem if his play gets in the way of it. Also, the circumstances are different now compared to two years ago, when Markkanen was on the NBA's most team-friendly deal, and he's not now. If he becomes a star again and Utah wants to trade him, they may not get what they could have in 2023.
2. What would teams offer for him?
If Markkanen looks like the same player who made the All-Star team two years ago, a playoff contender looking for that extra flavor could see him as the guy who gets them over the hump would be foolish not to inquire about him.
While that darn contract definitely affects what anyone would offer, it is a mystery to ponder what players could go for. The Jazz got a King's ransom for Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert, and while Markkanen is not as good as those two were, never underestimate a team's desperation.
Over the past year, we've seen Mikal Bridges, a good but not great player, fetch five first-round picks, and we've also seen Luka Doncic, an all-time player who hasn't even entered his prime, fetch one first-round pick, an aging Anthony Davis, and Max Christie.
If Markkanen is back at full throttle, he could go for a rich package that Bridges, a lesser player than him, got, or he could be sold off for a very minimal package, like the Dallas Mavericks got for Doncic. Utah has not crossed this bridge with Markkanen, but the thought of them doing so is so exciting that their upcoming tank will make everyone share Lowe's thought process.