Closure on Jazz Lauri Markkanen Saga Likely Next Week per Insider

It's finally decision time for the Utah Jazz.

Mar 27, 2024; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen (23) takes a three point shot over San Antonio Spurs forward Jeremy Sochan (10) during the second quarter at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports / Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

It's very likely Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen will re-sign with his current team. According to NBA Insider Evan Sidery of Forbes, an extension could happen early next week. Sidery shared his insight on 'X.'

"All signs are pointing towards Lauri Markkanen signing a new long-term contract with the Jazz next week.

Utah agreeing with Markkanen on a renegotiate-and-extend will allow them to hit their required salary floor, which bumps his salary above $40 million in 2024-25.

The Warriors also haven’t been close to offering what it would take for Utah to offload their superstar."

All signs are pointing towards Lauri Markkanen signing a new long-term contract with the Jazz next week.

Utah agreeing with Markkanen on a renegotiate-and-extend will allow them to hit their required salary floor, which bumps his salary above $40 million in 2024-25.

The… pic.twitter.com/JUvh1FLDqG

— Evan Sidery (@esidery) August 2, 2024

The million-dollar question moving forward is whether he will sign before or after August 6. If Markkanen signs after the sixth, then he's guaranteed to be in a Jazz uniform for the full season. Anything before would mean that the Jazz could deal their best player at the deadline.

It was reported earlier this week that Markkanen enjoys playing in Salt Lake City, which suggests that he may want to wait until after the sixth. Nobody has had more rumors circulating around Markkanen this year, and he may be tired of the distraction. A post-August 6th extension would solve that problem for at least one seaon.

Also, the Golden State Warriors can finally put the speculation that he'll be playing alongside Steph Curry this upcoming season to bed. Despite all the chatter that the Warriors were in the running to obtain Markkanen's services, it appears they were never close to landing the 2023 All-Star.

So, what does this mean for the Jazz in 2024-25 season? Today, the Jazz are still a projected lottery team, even with Markkanen. However, in order to get a top-5 pick, the Jazz may need to get creative.

Utah has shown that it can take the foot off the gas with a rostered Markkanen, but the tank game has never been implemented to start the season. If Utah starts the year with Markkanen, Collin Sexton, Jordan Clarkson, John Collins, and Keyonte George on the roster, there might be too much veteran presence to bottom out.

The 2025 draft class is projected to be loaded, and a Markkanen extension would stack the deck against the Jazz regarding the Cooper Flagg sweepstakes. That's bad news for the Jazz pro-tank crowd.

Jazz fans can expect more social media debate this upcoming season on whether tanking is the correct approach. Either way, Utah will need some luck if they're going to pair Markkanen with another All-Star via the draft, trade, or free agency.

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