Why are Lauri Markkanen’s numbers down? The Utah Jazz star says it’s all about the future.
The Jazz believe the 7-footer is making sacrifices that will help his team in the years to come.
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The Jazz just gave him a five-year, $238 million extension, so there’s understandable worry about his production. Have the Jazz made a franchise-changing mistake giving a lot of money to a mediocre player? A recent popular Reddit post called him “one of the worst contracts in the NBA.”
But a closer look at the situation reveals what’s going on: Markkanen is using this season to experiment with his game, taking harder shots than ever before.
“We’ve been working on, like, not getting just wide-open catch shoots all the time,” he said. “I’m trying to shoot more contested threes. Lightly contested, from behind dribble handoffs, and when they’re lazy switching. Stuff that I haven’t really shot before.”
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Markkanen, and the Jazz, think that practicing those types of contested shots now will pay dividends in future years, when playoff defenses get tougher. Perhaps they can use Markkanen like a tall Klay Thompson or JJ Redick, coming off of screens and getting looks off from anywhere on the court.
It’s a concept that he worked on in combination with Jazz head coach Will Hardy.
“Lauri and myself have had a lot of conversations over the last nine months about ways that he can improve. I think that he’s taken that challenge really well in terms of trying to generate those threes off the catch, and we’ve slowly dripped in some of the iso stuff around the elbow and the free throw line,” Hardy said. “I think he’s handled it great, because there have been moments where maybe he’s not making as many as he’s used to or as he would like, but he recognizes that big picture, this is what’s best for him and for us going forward.”
Some of Markkanen’s willingness to sacrifice for the bigger picture is likely due to his contract’s security. Being locked up for the next five years, he can feel more confident in investing in the franchise’s future overall, even if it hurts his stats in the short term.
So he’s not worried about the downturn in individual production, even if outsiders are.
“I think the numbers will even out eventually,” Markkanen said on Wednesday, before scoring 32 points in a win over the Los Angeles Lakers.
https://www.sltrib.com/sports/jazz/2025/02/13/utah-jazzs-lauri-markkanens/
I think worried Raptors fans need to take a step back. Darko is a development coach. Raptors are a young team needing to develop. How Scottie is used this year won’t be the same moving forward imo. Same with Dick, actually, especially Dick.
What better time to develop players than when wins aren’t a priority? Hopefully the Raptors reap the rewards next year.
