Lauri Markkanen had a bad season with the Utah Jazz, which led to the story that he was paid too much. As the calendar year draws to a close, Markkanen has had a resurgence and then some, leading to a surprisingly better start than many expected. The real twist, though, is that it’s not just him fueling this thrillingly mediocre start for the Jazz.
On “The Game Theory Podcast” with Sam Vecenie, Bryce Simon talked about how Markkanen has led Utah’s offense this season and exceeded expectations, but he also picked several players who should give the Jazz a good feeling about what’s to come.
“Lauri Markkanen is having a great season…I love the versatility that he shows every time I watch a Utah game, in terms of how you can use him as a ghost man, a ball screen man, a lob man. He can get out in transition, he can get off the bounce a little bit. Just his athleticism with shot making is really exciting.”
“…With Keyonte George…those two guys along with ideally a Walker Kessler, once he gets healthy next year, and then an Ace Bailey who continues to grow. That Utah team is a little bit closer, like, hey, are we going to make moves, I don’t want to say we’re winning right now, but maybe we’ll start to expand this thing. We’re not going to keep selling stuff.
“And I think the kind of year that Lauri is having this year, along with the growth of Keyonte George, may have changed my calculation a little bit of where that organization is right now.”
It remains an open question whether the Jazz should keep this core or try to blow up as much as possible to add another silver lining. Regardless of what they do, fans can be excited about the prospect of the team actually having a core to build around.
If the Jazz plan to expand this core, what is their next move?
A pro-tank fan would say the team’s next move would be: fill in the blank here. The problem is that the Jazz’s core has proven to be a little too good for a top pick at this point, even though it’s only December.
So if they feel like they have to see where this goes, the Jazz’s next move could be to trade for a quality veteran who can help a potential playoff push, or wait until free agency to see who on the market can help the most. They’ll have to work out Kessler’s limited freedom, but that shouldn’t be a problem if we’re really honest.
The fanbase certainly won’t be unanimous if Utah decides it’s best to continue with this core, but trying to cut back on something that shows progress could be more of a detriment than a benefit in the long run. Time will tell if the Jazz made the right choice, but at least they’re finally seeing something good that has the potential to get much better from here.
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