The Utah Jazz got the blow of a lifetime last night at the hands of the Charlotte Hornets. The Hornets aren’t exactly world beaters (they’re so talented that it’s a bit of a mystery that they’re as bad as they are), but the Jazz were undermanned. Among those who missed the game was Lauri Markkanen, and the Jazz were eviscerated at home by a team almost as bad as they show why Utah isn’t trading him.
The defeat puts the Jazz without Markkanen at 13-25 and 0-6, for StatMuse. It’s pretty clear that the Jazz are executing this strategy to both tank and keep their picks away from Oklahoma City, but these numbers show why it’s effective. Utah is clearly a better team with Markkanen, so that’s why he’s been out of the running several times in recent years.
There are other figures that only make the picture clearer. Since Utah acquired Markkanen in 2022, they have gone 22-62 over the last three seasons without him. for StatMuse. You can point out that a team obviously plays worse without its best player, but there have also been times when it’s clear that teams can do just fine without him.
In Utah’s case, the team can’t handle itself well without Markkanen, which confirms exactly why he’s not going anywhere. It could be obtained, but only at a price that a suitor would probably consider too rich for their comfort.
This should comfort Jazz fans for when they go all-in next season
Since Utah is arguably worse when Markkanen isn’t playing, Jazz fans should only be hyped for the future after this season. It’s become pretty clear that Utah is done tanking after this season. Their youth will be a year older, Walker Kessler will (probably) return, they will have a high lottery pick and they could land a big free agent in the summer.
Add that to Markkanen and the emerging Keyonte George, and the Jazz should at least be in a good position to compete in the play-in. By not resting Markkanen, Utah will be that much better on paper. Yes, this comes at the cost of making this current season infinitely less watchable, but fans are aware that this strategy should pay off in the end.
Markkanen has proven this season that he is still a true All-Star who gives the Jazz an edge when he is healthy and playing with a chip on his shoulder. The only problem is that Utah didn’t field a good core, but also went out of their way to make sure they couldn’t do that for obvious purposes.
With this version of Markkanen on a Jazz team that has every intention of trying next season, you can expect the best Jazz season since 2021.
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