Inside The Jazz

Former All-Defensive Guard Dubs Jazz's Lauri Markkanen Top 5 PF in NBA

The Utah Jazz All-Star got some love from one of the more memorable NBA guards in recent memory.

Jared Koch

Mar 25, 2024; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen warms up before the game against the Dallas Mavericks at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images
Mar 25, 2024; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen warms up before the game against the Dallas Mavericks at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images / Rob Gray-Imagn Images
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Ahead of a new NBA season, this point of the offseason always makes for a good time to dish out some new rankings and analysis of some of the top names in the game, and effectively see who may be at the top of the league before the next 82-game slate.

Most recently, we've seen some former NBA players get involved with a few rankings of their own, the latest being three-time All-Defensive guard Patrick Beverley and recent signee for overseas club Hapoel Tel Aviv of Israel, entering with his own takes-- specifically breaking down who he sees as the top five power forwards in the league ahead of the 2024-25 year.

During his analysis, we saw Utah Jazz star Lauri Markkanen get a bit of notable credit, as he made Beverley's cut as one of the best fours in the league, positioned alongside top names like Zion Williamson and Karl-Anthony Towns:

"Karl-Anthony Towns, Zion [Williamson], Jaren Jackson, Lauri Markkanen, Draymond's definitely still got to be in there. That's my list."

- Patrick Beverley on his top 5 PFs

Through Beverley's take, we also saw some interesting viewpoints from the twelve-year NBA vet as he noted a few widely regarded power forwards as different positions, such as considering guys like Milwaukee Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo as a small forward, as well as the Orlando Magic's Paolo Banchero.

Regardless, it's easy to see the regard that Beverley holds for Markkanen, placing him next to some of the better names at the position entirely.

Markkanen is coming off his second season with the Jazz, posting a productive year that consisted of 23.2 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 2.0 assists per night. We also saw some extremely appealing shooting splits to accompany those counting stats, emerging with a 48.0% clip from the field and 39.9% from three-point range.

Moving forward, Markkanen now has his deserved extension to keep him in Salt Lake City for the long haul and provides a chance for the 2017 top-ten pick to continue building off his most recent second two seasons. If and when the Jazz can put together a few extra wins in the left column, we may start to see a higher general consensus when stacking Markkanen up against the best in the league.

Markkanen and the Jazz will kick off their next campaign later next month, as their season opener against the Memphis Grizzlies is set for October 23rd.

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Jared Koch

JARED KOCH

Jared Koch is the Associate Editor of The Frozen Rope — SI.com's team website covering the Utah Jazz. He's covered the NBA and NFL for the past two years, also being the Managing Editor of Inside The Kings — SI.com's team website covering the Sacramento Kings.

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