If you missed part one, click here. If you missed part two, click here.

Chapter Seven: Lauri Markkanen

As mentioned, the Jazz also flubbed, intentionally or not, the rebuild by having legitimate veteran talent already. With the Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert trades, the team added guys like Lauri Markkanen and Collin Sexton, who also can win games. Alongside Jordan Clarkson, the Jazz then made a surprise move in trading for John Collins as a talented stretch-big. JC and JC alone can win games. With the balance of starting those veterans and including rookies, the Jazz flip-flopped their way through fun stretches of winning basketball and long stretches of lots of losses throughout last season (and really the last two seasons total).

Speaking on behalf of many Jazz fans, we don’t want to do that again. But speaking on behalf of Jazz fans, we are conflicted. We don’t want to lose. But we also don’t really want to win. We want talented players, but struggle to decide at what age or experience level.

Nothing illustrates this dilemma better than the Lauri Markkanen conundrum. As of August 7th, the conundrum was resolved as Markkanen resigned with Utah to stay for the next five years. The deal is immense – the biggest in Jazz history. It’s all locked in – he won’t be traded for a year, there are no options, he’s cemented.

Lauri Markkanen has signed a five-year, $238 million contract renegotiation and extension, per @wojespn

$220 million in new money is included 💰 pic.twitter.com/DfB5UEOVqo

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) August 7, 2024

Let’s pause to give the man his flowers. Before coming to Utah, Markkanen struggled to find his place in the NBA and in his own stardom. He played for the Bulls and the Cavs, battling injuries here and there, before finally breaking out with the Jazz as he earned an All-Star appearance and won the NBA’s Most Improved Player award in his first year with Utah. As a sweet-shooting big man, he is a rare talent already. Add that he can create for himself, and has a variety of dribble-drive or dribble-post moves, and you have a versatile offensive force that the NBA adores.

He also loves Utah, which makes him even more popular with the Jazz faithful. Within his first two years in the state, he couldn’t stop talking about how comfortable he felt with the franchise. During summer one, he had to finish mandatory military service back in his home country of Finland. During summer two, though, Markkanen adopted Mountain Basketball at a near literal level, hiking peaks all across the Wasatch in his off-season. With a wife and two kids, he feels at home. “We love to be here,” Markkanen said at his exit interview. “I’ve said it multiple times and my family likes to be here.” Earlier in the season, with The Athletic’s Sam Amick, Markkanen was even more clear. “Like I said, I love being in Utah… But yeah, I just want to emphasize that I really believe in what we’re building here with the Jazz.”

All-Star F Lauri Markkanen to ESPN on his new deal to stay with the Utah Jazz pic.twitter.com/5ghCsyEfmk

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 7, 2024

Before August, the Jazz were contemplating trade packages for Markkanen to go all-in for the rebuild and Capture the Flagg in next year’s draft. It was the Summer of Lauri as there was a steady flow of rumors and trade interest across the league for the big man, with nearly every team checking in and Danny Ainge remaining adamant that it would take a King’s Ransom to get our cornerstone. Most significantly, the Golden State Warriors were most active in hopes of extending the Steph Curry run by adding the 7-foot sniper. The best offer, reportedly, was Moses Moody and a bunch of OK picks while the Jazz wanted one of their younger studs, specifically Brandin Podziemski, and the grandfather offer to part with their guy. If you don’t know basketball, that’s fine. Let me make it easy for you: the trade offer was about as non-serious as you could get from Golden State, which is why nothing ever materialized.

Trading Markkanen would have given the Jazz at least three more first-round picks while solidifying its standing as a true bottom-five team in the NBA which would garner high odds for a high draft pick. To be clear, bottoming out for a potential top pick would be the only reason to trade away a guy like Lauri. Getting back additional firsts or young talent is just the cherry on top (and again, that’s what it would take to pry Lauri away and it was those cherries that Golden State was unwilling to offer). However, that would mean a lot of losses. More than we’ve had in the last two years even. Is that endurable? Plus, they would lose an All-NBA rare talent in Markkanen who is so, so smooth. When healthy, he is one of the best in the NBA. Many analysts agree that he is a true, real number two option on a championship team. You want those guys. And remember, he likes it here!

It didn’t happen.

And, here we are.

Probably still on the verge of having more losses than the previous two seasons because the Jazz are still straddling the line of competitive basketball or tanking. The upcoming draft classes are that good, that worth it. But with Lauri officially in the fold, they could very well finish 10th or higher – and give up their pick to Oklahoma City as that protection still exists. They can’t lose that pick, so they gotta lose. Can they do enough of that to keep Lauri happy and to race for a top pick? That’s the new Olympic event for the Jazz hoping to take gold and accomplish both feats and live happily ever after.

Outside of Markkanen, Sexton, Collins, and Clarkson will also make losing intentionally a tough task. Sexton is complicated; personally, I would keep him to work with the young, promising guards on the roster and continue to set the pace and mentality needed for a winning locker room. JC is beloved in Utah, but I think many see his time coming to an end. A lot didn’t want Collins in the first place, so they wouldn’t lose sleep if he was sent away. While the Jazz don’t need much more draft capital, trading away both players probably wouldn’t yield much of a return. In fact, some suggest they’d need to attach value to the players to get them sent away as both have limited interest across the league. According to the Jazz insider Tony Jones, writer for The Athletic, “You can’t trade people if there aren’t people who want to trade for them. John makes a little bit too much money. I don’t anticipate the Jazz being able to trade him until the last year of his contract.” He adds, “Clarkson is the one that surprises me because I thought he’d have a lot more of a market this summer, but it just hasn’t materialized.

Chapter Eight: So… and Other Questions

So.

What may come this upcoming season? With Markkanen and Co. back in the fold, plus the development of guys like Kessler or George, the Jazz will win games. They also just signed Patty Mills and I love him, so obviously that gets them an additional win or two just because I said so.

As of August 14th, with the draft and offseason over, rosters are mostly set. Looking at the NBA landscape, the Jazz are clearly better than the Detroit Pistons, Washington Wizards, and Brooklyn Nets. You could also argue about the Charlotte Hornets, Toronto Raptors, and Atlanta Hawks based on injuries or future trade dumps. Out West, they are only clearly better than one team: the Portland Trail Blazers. Best case scenario, the Jazz are 5th worst across the league, but possibilities exist for them to land in the 8-10 range, just like last year. In July, the betting line for Jazz wins was at 28.5, sixth worst in the league.

Technically, the Jazz have already been rebuilding for two years, but could you say they have been truly tanking? No. With the winning streaks combined with losing streaks, veteran guys, and rookie development, the Jazz haven’t really picked a side of the fence, yet. Instead, they asked fans to be faithful and watch it as they go. For two years, the Jazz have been bad. This season, it’ll be the same story. Not a full tear-down, tankathon towards rebuild, but below average and asking fans to “stand by me” after each home loss.

But get this: If the Jazz really want to acquire young talent, they’d have to be bad for two more years, if not three. And if they wanted top-end young talent, they’d have to be bad, bad.

Can I watch a losing franchise for five years?

Can I watch a losing franchise for five years while Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell continue to excel in their new homes?

Can I watch a losing franchise for five years while Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell continue to excel in their new homes with a strong probability (but no guarantee) that I won’t see the team get top-end draft talent to be top-of-the conference competitive for the next five?

And let’s interject here: Justin Zanick, general manager of the Jazz whose job no one should be envious of, said:

• In February 2024 the goal of roster construction and building the Utah Jazz team is to win. “All of us want to win,” Zanik said. “I want to win for a long time. The goal isn’t to make a Play-In, don’t make a Play-In, keep your pick, don’t keep your pick. Those aren’t the goals.” He’s been on record that the goal is to compete for multiple conference championships, every year as a contender. Keep in mind that the Jazz haven’t been out of the second round since 2007.
• In April 2024 the Jazz organization is ready to get players. “We’ve talked before about trying to predict the NBA drama that happens,” Zanik said in an interview with Andy Larsen and the Salt Lake Tribune. “You just sit there and wait for it to come, but we’re ready. You always want to get as many No. 1 guys as you can. In the absence of that, you want to get players that help the team function, and hopefully in a longer timeline than just a one- or two-year basis because of age.”
• In April 2024 and that same interview bottoming out is really hard. “I think it’s really hard to bottom out with what we already have, which I would rather have than not have”

What would you rather have? What about a game of would-you-rather?

Would you rather have Donovan Mitchell or Rudy Gobert or both for two years or the weird in-between seasons we just had?

Would you rather have Donovan Mitchell or Lauri Markkanen as the face of your franchise?

Would you rather have Lauri Markkanen or a near assurance of a top-five draft pick in 2025 and 2026?

Would you rather support fun regular-season basketball, first-round talent basketball, or competitive championship contender basketball?

When I can’t sleep at night, this is what I ponder. I don’t have answers yet, just three blog posts to act as my therapy. What about you?