There’s no star who’s more likely to be traded this season than Lauri Markkanen: a statement based on several recent developments and the mere fact that he’s a 7-foot-tall 28-year-old who possesses rare skills that are desperately coveted by every team in the league. After a stunning EuroBasket run, in which he scored more total points than every participant except Luka Doncic, Markkanen reminded everyone how freaking awesome he really is.
It was easy to forget, coming off a relatively disappointing, injury-plagued, and purposefully uncompetitive third year with the Utah Jazz, in which Markkanen was shut down halfway through March. But last season says less about who Markkanen is than the two campaigns that preceded it, when he made his first All-Star team, won Most Improved Player, and blossomed as a humongous two-way fulcrum who averaged 24.5 points per game with a 63.6 true shooting percentage. The Jazz won 31 games two seasons ago but still outscored opponents with Markkanen on the court, largely because his shotmaking, gravity, and constant motion helped buoy a middling offense.
For those who wince at the glorification of a one-time All-Star who’s never appeared in the playoffs, fair enough. But effectiveness comes in myriad forms and can be highlighted in many different situations. There’s no real debate to be had over the convenience of his skill set and how he positively impacts teammates without the ball in his hands. Markkanen is not a franchise player who’s worth building around. He is, though, a hyperfunctional accessory who can sharpen the edges of a team that’s looking to take the next step, which is something his current employer isn’t trying to do.
After tanking their way to a league-low 17 wins last season—a stretch of neglect that included a $100,000 fine in March for violating the NBA’s player participation policy after Markkanen missed several games for no verifiable reason—the Jazz got even less competitive over the summer, exchanging their best players for future assets and adding younger pieces through the draft. It was a clear sign of what’s to come. Jordan Clarkson, John Collins, and Collin Sexton went out. Ace Bailey, Walter Clayton Jr., and a bunch of veterans who will likely treat Salt Lake City as a weigh station came in. In other words, the writing is on the wall for Markkanen’s tenure in Utah.
Before we get into a trade idea or two, it’s necessary to take a look at Markkanen’s contract, which totals over $195 million through 2029. This season, it will account for 30 percent of his team’s cap—a.k.a. the type of deal (long and expensive) that’s unwieldy enough to stymie any good-faith negotiations under a CBA that seemingly exists to curb creativity. So, in an exercise like this, once you narrow down a list of suitors that are comfortable absorbing Markkanen’s long-term salary, the next hurdle is finding an aspirational buyer that also has enough draft picks, young talent, and movable contracts to satisfy the Jazz’s appetite.
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A couple candidates spring to mind, but for one reason or another, they just don’t seem able or willing to engage with Utah on realistic terms, be it thanks to their cap situation, dearth of assets, or lack of bone-deep self-confidence that’s required to make a trade like this. The center of the Venn diagram here is extremely slim, but I can still think of at least one team that should do whatever it takes to pry Markkanen out of Utah. It’s the Detroit Pistons, an ascending, hungry, well-budgeted club that has probably spent the past four months convinced it let the New York Knicks off the hook in the first round.
To start: Markkanen is an ideal sidekick to enhance the next half decade of Cade Cunningham’s career. He’s an exemplary pick-and-roll partner who can drill movement 3s and diversify Detroit’s somewhat predictable attack. Markkanen has already thrived under J.B. Bickerstaff—a coach who helped turn his career around in Cleveland—and is the type of player who makes perfect sense supporting a core that could really use reliable spacing in its frontcourt. In NBA terms, it’s pretty much as mutually beneficial as mutually beneficial relationships can get.
Would an offer of Jaden Ivey, Tobias Harris’s expiring contract, Bobi Klintman, and two first-round picks be enough to please both sides? Danny Ainge is known for setting his price unreasonably high and then refusing to back away from it (a tactic that’s worked great for him so far), but this feels like a win for him.
The Jazz get more draft capital and a speedy, high-upside, 23-year-old building block to clarify their rebuild. Before he broke his leg last January, Ivey was averaging 17.6 points and shooting just over 40 percent behind the 3-point line. If he doesn’t sign an extension over the next few weeks, he’ll become a restricted free agent next summer—an outcome the Jazz should be fine with. Ivey won’t be the franchise player who single-handedly makes them relevant, but he is a fascinating athlete who’s closer in age to whomever Utah ends up drafting to be that guy.
There’s also a world where Utah sits tight and waits until next July to field Markkanen offers, assuming more bids will come once teams have more financial freedom. But probability is not a guarantee. A lot can happen between now and then, including another so-so campaign from Markkanen on a team that’s once again designed to lose. And not that his wishes are the be-all and end-all, but that scenario plus a potential trade request may cheapen his value and diminish Utah’s leverage.
From the Pistons’ perspective, there’s one big question that needs answering: How good would they actually be? Put Markkanen at the 4 beside Jalen Duren (21 years old), Ausar Thompson (22 years old), and Cunningham (23 years old)—with Isaiah Stewart as the backup 5 and some supplementary role players like Caris LeVert, Duncan Robinson, and Ron Holland rounding out their rotations—and ask yourself whether that ceiling is worth the surging cost of a roster that hasn’t accomplished anything tangible to date. Duren is currently extension eligible, and Thompson’s second contract is on the horizon.
Depending on your point of view, this is either a dilemma or an opportunity. In a limp Eastern Conference, with complementary internal growth on their side, an immediate conference finals run wouldn’t be outlandish. Last season, the Pistons honed a successful identity that was based on toughness, physicality, and open-floor athleticism. Markkanen can smooth the edges in a half-court offense that ranked 19th, expanding Bickerstaff’s playbook without taking anything off the table defensively or on the glass. Don’t let Markkanen’s outside touch fool you: This is a large man who enjoys contact.
There’s risk here for Detroit, sure. Markkanen is very good but might not be “missing piece” good for an organization that hasn’t won a playoff series in almost two decades. He also regularly misses quite a bit of time, with the 68 games he appeared in as a rookie still standing as a career high. But Cunningham is a franchise player who deserves a slightly accelerated timeline, and there’s no guarantee anyone better will come along. The time to strike—to lock up a team that can mature and climb together—is now..
The particulars are different, but this type of deal runs parallel to Indiana’s pursuit of Pascal Siakam or even Orlando’s stunning swing for Desmond Bane. They weren’t quite an all-in push, but damn close enough to signal how serious the Pacers and Magic were about winning sooner rather than later. The NBA is a better place when that mindset prevails. It’d be cool if the Pistons agreed.
