Lauri Markkanen’s Insanely Efficient 2025 Eurobasket Performance
After what many thought was a down year for Lauri Markkanen, he shut down all doubters by averaging an insanely efficient 40 points in his first three games at the 2025 Eurobasket. He has scored 42 points, 31 points, and 48 points so far in Eurobasket. The craziest part about this type of scoring output is the efficiency with which he is doing it. He’s shooting a remarkable 68.6% from the field and 53.8% from deep. Can he keep it up?
Does This Insanely Efficient Performance Mean Anything For the Jazz?
With all of this being said, can Markkanen lead the Jazz to the playoffs for the first time since they traded Donovan Mitchell? Probably not. The Utah Jazz roster doesn’t have the high-end talent that most playoff teams possess. Not to mention, they are a very young team and are going to let a ton of their young guys get plenty of minutes this upcoming season. After Markkanen signed a huge extension last summer, most people thought it was an overpay because of how he looked this past season.
He won’t be able to continue this level of play in the Eurobasket, but if he can be that all-star type of player that he was in 2023, then the deal isn’t as bad as people might think. The Jazz also have a ton of players on rookie-scale deals, so it makes sense to pay your best player that type of money. We have already seen that trading for Markkanen isn’t going to be cheap for the team acquiring him.
Lauri Markkanen’s Insanely Efficient Play Could Help Jazz Get Off His Contract Earlier
With this insanely efficient level of play, it could help Utah unload his massive contract earlier instead of keeping him for the entire contract. Teams around the league would be lining up to make a pitch for the versatile 7-footer. The Jazz front office could save money on their books as well as get back some younger talent and/or draft capital in a Markkanen trade. With some of the moves that they have made this summer, it doesn’t seem like they are trying to compete for a play-in spot or a playoff spot.
Final Thoughts
People know how incredibly tight the playoff race is going to be this season in the Western Conference. It makes the most sense that Utah plays this season out and tries to land another top lottery pick. Next year’s draft is supposed to be a great one. Utah must also continue to develop the young guys that you already have, and hope to see signs of building a winning culture in Utah. Markkanen upped his trade value with his insanely efficient performance so far in the Eurobasket, but only time will tell what the Jazz front office has in store for their roster.
