The Utah Jazz have reportedly made Lauri Markkanen available for trade, possibly reigniting interest from the Golden State Warriors, who have pursued the sharpshooting forward for several years.
According to Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix, the Jazz are “very open” to moving the 1-time Finnish All-Star, possibly even before the start of the 2025-26 season.
“Lauri Markkanen is the name I hear most frequently,” he wrote in his season preview.
“Utah passed on an offer from Golden State for Markkanen in the summer of 2024, believing a stronger market would materialize. It didn’t, and right now there is a belief that the Jazz are very open for business on their 28-year-old ex-All-Star.”
As Mannix alluded to, the Warriors and Jazz had extensive talks about Markkanen in the lead-up to the 2024-25 season, with some reports suggesting that Golden State refused to part with Brandin Podziemski, at the time their prized rookie guard.
Will Warriors Trade for Lauri?
According to NBA insider Marc Stein, the Warriors were willing to part with several first-round picks, but insisted on holding onto both Podz and Jonathan Kuminga.
“Golden State, to date, had pursued Markkanen without including Podziemski or Jonathan Kuminga in trade packages laden with future draft compensation,” Stein wrote. “Obviously no team, to this point, has met [Jazz CEO of basketball operations] Danny Ainge’s asking price.”
Podz confirmed the reports in an interview with The Athletic’s Anthony Slater.
“He [Joe Lacob] told me, ‘You don’t have anything to worry about. You’re a priority here,’” Podziemski said in September 2024. “I appreciate that, being a rookie and going into my second year, hearing that from such a prestigious organization. It feels good. I’m wanted somewhere. So, I appreciate them.
“They could keep me in the dark until a trade is done. But Mike and Joe were transparent from the draft to the Paul George situation to the Markkanen situation.”
Kuming Expected to be Moved
A lot has changed since the summer of 2024, when the Warriors considered Kuminga and Podz as their two core building blocks of the future. Entering the 2025-26 season, it’s almost a certainty that Kuminga will be moved midway through the campaign, and Podz’s future with the franchise is far from certain.
According to The Stein Line’s Jake Fisher, the Warriors will shop Kuminga when he becomes trade-eligible on January 15.
“The mounting expectation, as a result, is that the Warriors will make Kuminga available in the trade market once he becomes eligible to be dealt on Jan. 15 to see what sort of return is out there for the 22-year-old before the Feb. 5 trade deadline,” Fisher wrote on October 5.
“I’m told that the relationship across this bargaining table, after such long-running talks, is certainly strained. How Kuminga fits with the (Jimmy) Butler Era Warriors will thus be one of the key storylines to track through the season’s first few months.”
“If Kuminga struggles to establish a consistent role under Warriors coach Steve Kerr, as he has in the past, his name is destined to be at the forefront of Trade Season speculation.”
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