Lauri Markkanen Articles - Page 5

The Utah Jazz were a surprise team to start last season and one main reason for their success was Finnish forward Lauri Markkanen. He had an impressive 2022-23 campaign as he was selected as an All-Star starter in his home city of Salt Lake. Looking to build off his spectacular year, Markkanen has been terrific, […]

Lauri Markkanen was the league’s pre-eminent breakout star during the 2022-23 season, earning Most Improved Player honors in his first season as the number one option for the Utah Jazz. As a result, Markkanen became the pillar of the Jazz’s rebuilding efforts given how versatile the 26-year old forward is on the offensive end. However, […]

To say that the Utah Jazz have been struggling would be an understatement. This team has lost nine of their last 12 games and have struggled to find their identity on offense without All-Star Lauri Markkanen. After missing the last eight games due to a hamstring injury, Markkanen appears to be on track to return […]

The Utah Jazz’s depth is starting to show despite not having Lauri Markkanen. They got a needed win over the New Orleans Pelicans where everyone was able to contribute to the best that they could. Will Hardy is managing players like Walker Kessler, Simone Fontecchio, Keyonte George, and other key players. His schematics paved the […]

A 5-11 team who already struggles to shoot the ball cannot typically afford to be without its best player. But that is the unlucky hand the Utah Jazz are being dealt ahead of Monday night’s home matchup with the New Orleans Pelicans. Lauri Markkanen has been ruled out with a left hamstring strain, per the […]

The Utah Jazz got off to a great start last season. Around this time last season, the Jazz were 12-6 with a +3.9 net rating that ranked seventh in the NBA at the time, per NBA.com. Lauri Markkanen was just beginning what would become his breakout season and Jordan Clarkson looked rejuvenated as a starter. […]

The NBA season heats up with an in-season tournament matchup between the Utah Jazz and Los Angeles Lakers. Our NBA odds series continues with a Jazz-Lakers prediction and pick. As one of the younger teams in the league, it was widely expected to be a season of ups and downs for the Utah Jazz. However, […]

Regardless of how he is perceived, Kevin Durant is bound to make some headlines when he posts on social media. Monday, he fired a succinct and biting reply that appeared to address the officials’ controversial decision to overturn a foul call on Lauri Markkanen at the end of the Phoenix Suns’ 140-137 double-overtime victory against […]

The Phoenix Suns came away with a wild 140-137 double overtime win over the Utah Jazz on Sunday, and it did not come without controversy, as what was originally ruled as a foul on Kevin Durant on a Lauri Markkanen game-tying 3-point attempt was overturned on a coach’s challenge, virtually ending the game. 🚨 UPDATE: […]

The Atlanta Hawks are in the midst of a resurgent campaign with a 6-4 record to start the 2023-24 NBA season. This comes after a pair of disappointing first round playoff exits following an Eastern Conference Finals appearance in 2021. The Hawks have looked good so far under the tutelage of Quin Snyder, whom the […]

The future is now for the Oklahoma City Thunder. With a 7-4 record through the first four weeks of the 2023-24 NBA season, Oklahoma City is off to its best start in five years. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has emerged as a legitimate All-NBA star. The Thunder have surrounded him with an intriguing young core that could […]

At first glance, the package the Philadelphia 76ers received from the Los Angeles Clippers in the James Harden trade is exceptionally underwhelming. The Sixers received four of the Clippers’ power forwards in Robert Covington, Nicolas Batum, Marcus Morris, and KJ Martin, and none of those players particularly move the needle for a team hunting for […]

Not long ago, the Utah Jazz were the 1-seed in the Western Conference with Donovan Mitchell, Mike Conley Jr., Bojan Bogdanovic, and Rudy Gobert running the show. With Mitchell, Gobert, and Bogdanovic all being traded before the start of the 2022-23 season, the Jazz were viewed as a younger, inexperienced team that would finish near […]

Rebounding and paint presence are aspects of the game that the Utah Jazz are surprisingly excelling during the span of the NBA Preseason. They are looking to build on the recent experiences of Walker Kessler on Team USA and Lauri Markkanen on the All-Star team. But, their frontcourt will only be useful if they are given […]

The Utah Jazz are an intriguing team heading into 2023-24 NBA training camp. Utah made some changes this offseason by acquiring John Collins via trade. They also had three first-round picks, selecting Keyonte George, Brice Sensabaugh, and Taylor Hendricks. The Jazz have a talented young team led by Lauri Markkanen. Markkanen had a breakout season, […]

Utah Jazz fans can officially rejoice, as they welcome back their team’s best player to the United States. Lauri Markkanen has officially completed his mandatory military service for his native Finland and will be ready to go for NBA training camp next week. The 2022 All-Star shared the big news on Friday in an Instagram […]

Who is the best player in the NBA? This is a question basketball fans debate every single year, and it’s one that often has no right answer. MVP candidates such as Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Stephen Curry and LeBron James are obviously amongst the best of the best, but one player cannot win […]

The Utah Jazz should have been full-time sellers last season, especially after they traded their All-Star tandem of Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell during the 2022 offseason. But a lucky stretch of games that saw them start 10-3 in the regular season masked what they should have been doing — tanking for more ping-pong balls […]

Many tabbed them to finish with the worst record in the league this past season, but the Utah Jazz ended up being one of the biggest surprises in the NBA, coming up just short of reaching the Play-In Tournament in the Western Conference. A team with no clear-cut star entering the year after trading away […]

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 […]

The Oklahoma City Thunder are an up-and-coming team. They feature plenty of potential with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander leading the charge. Chet Holmgren will finally make his NBA regular season debut as well during the 2023-24 season. Competing in the talented Western Conference will still prove to be difficult though. Trading for another star would help the […]

Everyone though they would finish near the bottom of the league standings this past season, yet the Utah Jazz came up just a couple of wins shy of reaching the play-in tournament in the Western Conference. The Jazz are going to continue to grow into a threat for many years to come, especially after they […]

It isn’t a secret to most NBA fans that the Utah Jazz are not necessarily trying their hardest to compete, at least this season. Having earned an early draft pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, the Jazz seem comfortable with resetting their timeline – although how they act in free agency could bump that up. […]

After coming up short in the 2023 NBA Finals to the Denver Nuggets, the Miami Heat are looking to make significant moves this offseason. The trade rumor mill is already quickly heating up this summer and the Heat are right in the mix of it all. Miami has been linked to several big names who […]

The Utah Jazz are in the midst of a full blown rebuild and will now be looking ahead to the 2023 NBA Draft in order to continue laying the foundation for the future. As of right now, it looks like they already have the cornerstones of their franchise for years to come. Lauri Markkanen broke […]

Free agent guard Kyrie Irving is reportedly trying to recruit LeBron James to play with him and Luka Doncic with the Dallas Mavericks. Mavs fans are probably salivating at the thought of having a big three of Doncic, James, and Irving making magic together in Dallas. Of course the news sent NBA Twitter into a […]

The Philadelphia 76ers’ offseason is underway after once again losing in the second round of the playoffs. The reality of having to trade Joel Embiid hasn’t truly arrived but it’s still getting too close for comfort. The Sixers have to get it right this offseason. While the possibility of James Harden going to Houston still […]

Lauri Markkanen of the Utah Jazz has won the NBA’s Most Improved Player award, according to ESPN. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder finished second, while Jalen Brunson of the New York Knicks finished third. Lauri Markkanen received 69 first-place votes, 27 second-place votes and four third-place votes, giving him 430 total points. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander […]

Los Angeles Clippers star Paul George firmly believes Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen deserves to win the Most Improved Player award for 2022-23, and for good reason. Markkanen is one of the three finalists for the honor along with New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson and Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. All three have […]

After a few years of being labeled as a “bust”, it seems like Lauri Markkanen finally found his groove. After being traded to the Utah Jazz, the Finnish forward broke out as one of the best players for the team. He’s a big reason why Utah was in the playoff hunt right until the end […]

As far as NBA awards go, none are less exact or more backhanded than Most Improved Player. While all NBA awards have an inexact set of criteria, the MIP is particularly confusing, its winners existing in some fuzzy halfspace between mediocrity and greatness. Here’s an award that’s been won by future Hall of Fame caliber […]

While most players will be off to a vacation in the offseason, Lauri Markkanen will be busy learning how to defend Finland. The Utah Jazz marksman will be serving a mandatory service for the Finnish military after the end of the 2022-23 NBA season. Once Twitter citizens heard of the news of Lauri Markkanen joining […]

After shocking the basketball world with a totally unexpected strong start to the season, the Utah Jazz have now fallen back down to earth. They are now just a few games away from their playoff-less campaign officially coming to an end as they look toward another very interesting offseason. They have a game coming up […]

While other NBA players will be doing their routine offseason workouts, rehabbing their injuries, or simply relaxing, Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen will be entering the military service. Not that he has any choice in the matter. “It’s mandatory, we have to do it, but at the same time we take pride in it, too,” […]

The 12-seeded Utah Jazz have four games to try and work their way into the play-in picture. Trailing the 10-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder by a mere two wins, Will Hardy and company are going to need to win during their remaining regular season schedule to simply give themselves a chance at keeping their postseason hopes […]

After a bounceback season with the Cleveland Cavaliers and a strong showing for the Finnish national team in the EuroBasket tournament that following summer, Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen has had a career season in Salt Lake City and looks to be the frontrunner for the 2023 Most Improved Player award. Markkanen, who was drafted […]

Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen was one of two players that the franchise made untouchable ahead of the 2022-23 trade deadline but in case he needed any more indication that the Jazz plan to keep him for the long run, he got it. In a lengthy interview about his career journey, Markkanen told HoopsHype’s Michael […]

The Utah Jazz get to host LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night in what is going to be one out of their last four games of the season. A matchup against the Lakers is always a huge draw for any team, and the same will be the case for the Jazz […]

The Utah Jazz remain in playoff contention as the 2022-23 regular season winds down. They will face the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday afternoon and look to secure a win as they fall out of position for the play-in tournament. Before the 3:30 P.M. EST tip-off, an important question lingers: Is Lauri Markkanen playing vs. the Nets? Lauri […]