Lauri Markkanen Happy To Remain With Jazz

Lauri Markkanen‘s offseason fate seemed uncertain all the way up to August 7, when he renegotiated and extended his contract with the Jazz, adding $220MM in new money to the deal, which now runs through the 2028/29 season. Markkanen was the subject of endless speculation before his decision became final, but he tells Tony Jones of The Athletic that he tried to ignore the rumors.

“I think it’s fair to say that I saw the stuff online, but I tried very hard not to pay attention to it. I’m a big believer in what the front office and the coaching staff are doing,” Markkanen said. “I think it’s the people we have around and the environment we have. We have a group of guys that want to get better. I’ve embraced the leadership role, and my family truly enjoys Utah. We have enjoyed our two years here.”

Markkanen purposefully waited to sign his new deal until the point where he can’t be traded this season. The renegotiation means he won’t become trade eligible for six months, and the NBA’s trade deadline falls on February 6.

Utah is in the midst of a rebuilding process and is more likely to be contending for a top-five draft pick than a spot in the play-in tournament. That caused numerous teams to approach the Jazz with trade offers, hoping they might want to unload Markkanen and bottom out completely ahead of a loaded draft.

The Kings reportedly made “significant progress” toward a deal before talks feel apart in July. The Warriors also had serious discussions with Utah, as did the Spurs, who have been interested in acquiring Markkanen since he was a free agent in 2021.

Although any of those teams could offered Markkanen a faster path to the playoffs, he preferred to stay with the Jazz and help turn them around.

“It was a nice feeling to know that a lot of teams wanted you to play for their franchise,” he said. “It was kind of a cool thing to be honest. It tells me that I’ve been able to get a lot better as a player. But I tried not to think about it beyond that. I know that I wanted to come back to Utah, and that’s where my priorities were.”

Markkanen hopes to improve at handling the ball and making plays off the dribble this season, Jones adds. He also wants to become more of a leader for his young teammates, both vocally and with his on-court performance. No matter how many games the Jazz win, Markkanen sees this year as an important point toward building a long-term contender.

“I think it’s important to get game reps that you can’t simulate in practice,” he added. “I think that I can get a lot better, so I want to work on the things that I do well. I want to show these guys by example how to do the right things. I want to play the right way, especially with how coach (Will Hardy) wants us to play. I want to hold myself to a high standard.”