Bulls Trade Mavs Target Lauri Markkanen To Cavaliers in Sign and Trade

Dallas Mavericks Target Lauri Markkanen is making his way to another Eastern Conference team via sign and trade

Matt Galatzan | Aug 27, 2021

Remaining in need of reinforcements on their roster, the Dallas Mavericks were rumored to be in connection with former No. 7 overall pick and Chicago Bulls big man, Lauri Markkanen.

On Friday, whatever pursuit the Mavs might have been involved in, ended, with Markkanen reportedly being acquired by the Cleveland Cavaliers on a four-year $67 million deal via a three-team sign and trade, per ESPN.

In return for Markkanen, the Cavaliers will be sending Derrick Jones Jr. to Chicago, as well as sending Larry Nance Jr. to the Portland Trailblazers.

Chicago will also receive Portland's lottery-protected future first-round pick, as well as a future second-round pick from Cleveland.

The Blazers pick is protected, which is lottery-protected through 2028, becomes a Portland second-round pick if the pick is not conveyed before 2028, per the report.

Markannen, who entered the summer as a restricted free agent, is coming off his fourth season with the Bulls in which he struggled to live up to the production of any of his first three seasons.

In fact, Markkanen averaged a career-low in scoring, rebounding, and blocked shots, averaging 13.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, and just .3 blocks in 51 games, with 26 starts.

On the bright side for Cleveland, the 24-year-old did average career-bests in shooting percentage both from three-point range and overall, hitting 48-percent from the field and 40.2-percent from deep.

With Markkanen now off the market, the Mavs will turn their attention elsewhere, likely to veteran point guard Goran Dragic, who has been deeply connected to the Mavericks in recent weeks, while expressing explicit desire to move on from his current home with the Toronto Raptors.

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Published Aug 27, 2021

MATT GALATZAN

Matt Galatzan is the Publisher of LonghornsCountry.com, AllAggies.com, and the Managing Editor of BuckeyesNow.com and TheGroveReport.com. He is also the Editor-In-Chief of RamDigest.com and TexansDaily.com. Galatzan graduated from the University of Mississippi, where he studied integrated marketing communications, with minors in journalism and business administration. Galatzan started in the sports journalism industry under Mike Fisher at DallasBasketball.com in 2014, which at the time was part of the 247Sports network. He also spent two years covering the SMU Mustangs for PonyStampede.com on the 247Sports network. When DallasBasketball.com and CowboysCountry.com moved over to Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation network in 2020, Galatzan followed suit, eventually being taking over as the Managing Editor and Publisher of LonghornsCountry.com and AllAggies.com a year later. Through the years, Galatzan has conducted a handful of high-profile one-on-one interviews to add to his resume — in both writing and podcasting. Some of his biggest interviews have been with Mavs owner Mark Cuban, former Longhorns players Dan Neil and Phil Dawson, and many other recruits, and current/former players for each of the teams he has covered. Galatzan is also a full-time employee in the digital media department for Audacy and KRLD FM's 105.3 The Fan in Dallas, which is the official radio home of the Dallas Cowboys. You can find Galatzan on all major social media channels, including Twitter on @MattGalatzan. For any inquiries, please email matt.galatzan@gmail.com