Utah Jazz star Lauri Markkanen was talked about as a potential player that the New York Knicks could have traded All-Star Julius Randle for ahead of the 2024-25 campaign. However, any chances of that happening this summer, or next season for that matter, are over.
Markkanen has blossomed into one of the most versatile and impactful marquee players in the league. The 7-1 talent averaged 23.2 points, 8.2 rebounds, and two assists per night on 39.9 percent shooting from three-point range in 2023-24. A year prior, Markkanen was named a 2023 All-Star and put up a career-high 25.6 PPG for Utah. The fact that he can naturally play small forward, power forward, and center at his size, while connecting from outside like a true marksman, has made him a highly desired game-changer across the league.
Knicks lose out on trade for Lauri Markkanen
Hence, the Jazz opted to hang on to their Swiss army knife franchise player. The Ringer’s Michael Pina laid out the implications of the recent contract extension that the Finnish star signed to remain in Utah, and how it shuts the door on the possibility for the Knicks to double back with a trade offer later in the year:
“Lauri Markkanen has renegotiated and extended his contract with the Utah Jazz to the tune of five years, $238 million. The money matters, but not as much as the timing. This deal makes Markkanen trade ineligible for six months. His decision to sign it on August 7, a day after he was eligible for a new extension, means he cannot be dealt before the February 6 trade deadline, pulling one of the most attractive, ostensibly attainable players off the market next season and out of free agency next summer,” Pina wrote.
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Knicks won’t have an out with Markkanen if they look to trade Julius Randle midseason
By the looks of things, the Knicks will enter the 2024-25 campaign with their current roster intact. That means that they’ll give a title run another go with All-Star Julius Randle helping lead the way next to franchise player Jalen Brunson next season. However, with all of the trade rumors that have hovered over his head this offseason, the Kentucky product could be put under a microscope next year. His playoff struggles have also not been remedied yet in his four-year tenure in New York.
Thus, according to reports, New York’s front office won’t be able to push their chips to the front of the table for Markkanen at the trade deadline. Markkanen would have been a great fit in the Knicks’ evolving mold that’s trending more toward a fast and free-flowing offense predicated on outside shooting, rather than isolation play. No matter, the Knicks will have to prepare to face the former 2023 Most Improved Player of the Year when the Jazz show up on their schedule. The Knicks will get their next chance to make a play for him next summer, that is, if he even gets put on the trade block.
