Lauri Markkanen’s name has been in numerous trade rumors since last year, but the Utah Jazz have shown no signs of planning to offload him anytime soon.
However, if their 2025-26 campaign goes south and they receive a lucrative offer, the Utah Jazz might have to reconsider their stance. Michael Pina of The Ringer listed the Detroit Pistons as the ideal suitor for Markkanen.
“The center of the Venn diagram here is extremely slim, but I can still think of at least one team that should do whatever it takes to pry Markkanen out of Utah. It’s the Detroit Pistons, an ascending, hungry, well-budgeted club that has probably spent the past four months convinced it let the New York Knicks off the hook in the first round,” Pina suggested.
“Markkanen is an ideal sidekick to enhance the next half-decade of Cade Cunningham’s career,” he continued. “Markkanen has already thrived under J.B. Bickerstaff—a coach who helped turn his career around in Cleveland—and is the type of player who makes perfect sense supporting a core that could really use reliable spacing in its frontcourt… Would an offer of Jaden Ivey, Tobias Harris’s expiring contract, Bobi Klintman, and two first-round picks be enough to please both sides?
Utah Jazz urged to hand contract extension offer to up-and-coming big man
According to Shaun Powell of NBA.com, the Utah Jazz need to lock down Walker Kessler, who has emerged as one of the league’s best rim protectors. Kessler is entering the final year of his rookie deal before he hits restricted free agency next summer.
“Another long season lies ahead for the Jazz, who at least acknowledged their fate and got started on the rebuild this summer, shipping out Sexton, Jordan Clarkson, and John Collins. It’s all about the youngsters and their growth… as well as what the 2026 NBA Draft, which projects as rich, will bring,” Powell wrote.
“Utah should, and probably will, make a long-term commitment to center Walker Kessler, who escaped the summer red-tag sale and appears to be a keeper,” he added.
