As the Lauri Markkanen trade battle heats up, NBA insiders believe one team is confident the Utah Jazz star will be moved.
NBA insider Marc Stein reported Friday that at least one of the teams interested in Markkanen is confident that Utah will trade the NBA All-Star forward in the near future, even if he signs a contract extension.
Stein reports that Markkanen wants to remain with the Jazz, but Utah remains willing to trade him due to the difficulty of acquiring a top-tier player alongside him.
“Given the projected strength of the NBA's 2025 and 2026 draft classes, the trade route could become even more attractive,” Stein said.
An important note here is the structure of Markkanen's current contract: The Jazz don't have $30 million in cap space available until Aug. 6, so they likely won't sign the Finnish big man to an extension until then. If Markkanen re-signs with Utah at that point, the Jazz wouldn't be able to trade him for exactly six months, which is the trade deadline after the 2024-2025 season.
The Warriors have emerged as a possible destination for Markkanen, but a trade would likely cost the franchise valuable draft picks, and Jazz CEO Danny Ainge is known for his nous for trading those picks into superstars.
Another complication: The 27-year-old has one year left on his contract and would demand significantly more than the $18 million he'll be paid next season, so any team trading for him would need to get him to a long-term deal to justify it.
Utah has never been able to build a consistent playoff team around Markkanen and may let him go at some point, but Golden State is still looking for another quality player to pair with Stephen Curry and the 7-foot forward could be just what the franchise needs.
Still, nothing is concrete at this point, and reports suggest the Jazz may stick to the status quo and work on a long-term extension.
For now, Warriors fans can hold out hope of seeing Markonen and Stephen Curry blasting 3-pointers together.
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