Ex-jazz reporter says the quiet part out loud about the Lauri Markkanen trade

A Lauri Markkanen trade has been a hot topic for the Utah Jazz over the past month. There has been a lot of speculation that the Jazz could pull the trigger on a trade. Former Jazz reporter Tony Jones revealed that whether that’s the case or not, Utah will only trade him if they get a return package that’s too good to pass up.

Jones, who now covers the Philadelphia 76ers, revealed that the Jazz won’t trade Markkanen away unless they’re impressed with the package they get in return.

While this may seem like a given, many believe that because Utah is in the midst of a rebuild, the team would jump at the chance to trade him so the Jazz can embrace their youth movement once and for all. However, the Jazz have no reason to have this mentality.

Keeping Markkanen doesn’t hinder their tank ambitions (yet), so until he proves to be a problem, and until the Jazz know for sure that keeping him is against their best interest above all, they won’t trade him just because they can. They will trade him if and when they get an offer they couldn’t refuse.

Considering Danny Ainge might be the NBA equivalent of Vito Corleone, that would take quite some time Godfather-like offer to get his attention.

That doesn’t mean there won’t be any trading

Even if the Jazz don’t want to trade Markkanen just because they can, the opportunity could still present itself down the road. Teams become desperate when they are on the right track and just need a missing piece, or when they don’t meet expectations and want to get back on track.

Markkanen is the kind of player who can meet both expectations if acquired. Something a trade partner should know is that Utah already has plenty of depth assets in its arsenal. They don’t just want more of it. They want to improve them in general.

A GM like Danny Ainge is smart enough to know when to take advantage of a trade partner’s desperation (which is why Draymond Green advised Golden State not to acquire Markkanen), so if he sees a trade offer that will certainly benefit Utah in the long run, he’ll definitely take it.

Therefore, no one should really have any idea what the plan is. There’s no telling what a team would be willing to offer in a Markkanen deal. If one happens, fans should be pretty confident in the package the team gets in return because Markkanen is just as good and Ainge is just as good at pulling out assets.