There were plenty of breakout stars during the 2022-23 NBA season, but Lauri Markkanen was perhaps the most notable, hence why he ended up winning the Most Improved Player award. In his first season with the Utah Jazz, Markkanen took a massive step forward in his career and he is now the face of the Jazz, a franchise that was staring down a complete rebuild after trading away two All-Stars in Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert last summer.

A rebuild is no longer on the horizon in Utah, as Markkanen has paved a path to immediate success with what has suddenly turned into one of the most intriguing teams in the entire league. The Jazz are still far off from being a real threat in the Western Conference, but they came up just short of the Play-In Tournament this past year and are only going to get better as their youth reaches their full potential.

Recently turning 26 years old, Markkanen is still growing in the NBA and what he did this past season was extremely impressive. Averaging a career-high 25.6 points and a career-high 8.6 rebounds per game, he earned All-Star honors for the first time in his career and is now in line to become the highest paid player on Utah's roster in due time.

With just two more seasons left on his current contract and the final season of his deal, the 2024-25 season, being partially-guaranteed, Markkanen will absolutely be receiving a contract extension from the Jazz sooner than later. As for how this deal could be structured, the Jazz could wind up taking a similar approach to what the Sacramento Kings recently did with All-Star center Domantas Sabonis, according to HoopsHype's Michael Scotto.

“This summer, we saw Domantas Sabonis agree to a renegotiation and extension deal with the Sacramento Kings, and there’s another candidate to keep an eye on down the line for something similar,” Scotto stated. “Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen is a renegotiation and extension candidate for next year to keep an eye on, from what I’ve heard. Currently, Markkanen is owed $17.3 million this upcoming season, and then only $6 million of his $18 million salary is guaranteed for the 2024-25 season.”

There really is no reason why Markkanen will not receive an extension next offseason, especially since the Jazz will have cap flexibility and since he is their young star. This offseason, Sabonis signed a five-year, $207 million extension with the Kings and this deal ultimately increased his salary for the 2023-24 season, the final year of his current contract.

As Scotto stated, this is likely what will happen with the Jazz and their star, as the final year of his contract is partially-guaranteed. When the time comes for an extension, Utah will not only be guaranteeing this final year, but they will likely increase Markkanen's base salary and then add four more years onto his deal, which would ultimately keep him under contract through the 2028-29 season.

Maybe he is not the best pure scorer in the league and maybe he still has room to grow, but there is no denying that Markkanen has a chance to become the best combo forward in the entire league. This is why the Jazz are so high on him and this is why he will be getting a big extension in the near future.