The Utah Jazz did their due diligence in listening to trade offers for All-Star Lauri Markkanen this offseason. But after those offers failed to come close to their expectations, Jazz pivoted and signed Markkanen to the largest contract in franchise history.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports that Markkanen signed a five-year, $238 million contract that is part renegotiation and part extension.
The agreement will see Markkanen getting a salary bump for 2024-25 from $18 million to $42 million while also getting another four years and $196 million added.
Jazz confirmed the deal with Markkanen via a video shared on their official X (former Twitter) page.
“I’m excited to get this extension done,” Markkanen said in the video. “I’m ready to get back to work and build with this franchise.”
Lauri Markkanen started his career with the Chicago Bulls as the seventh overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft. Despite showing some early promise, Markkanen fell out of favor in Chicago and went to the Cleveland Cavaliers in a sign-and-trade during the 2021 offseason.
Markkanen enjoyed a solid campaign with the Cavs in 2021-22 and played well enough for Jazz to ask for him in a trade that saw star shooting guard Donovan Mitchell head to Cleveland.
In his first season with the Jazz, Markkanen unlocked a new level to his game that saw him average 25.6 points and 8.6 rebounds while shooting close to 40% from behind the arc. He was named Most Improved Player and received his first All-Star nod.
Last season, Markkanen showed that his 2022-23 breakthrough wasn’t a fluke, as he averaged 23.2 points and 8.2 rebounds while becoming even more efficient as a three-point shooter.
With Jazz in a rebuild mode, a number of teams, including the Golden State Warriors, reached out to the Jazz in attempts to get a deal done for Markkanen. However, it turns out that Markkanen will now lead that rebuild and possibly be a star that brings Jazz back to relevancy.
