The Golden State Warriors chased Lauri Markkanen hard in the 2024 offseason, but they drew a line when it came to Brandin Podziemski. Utah eventually kept the Finnish forward and extended him, while Golden State held back from paying the full price.
Now, 30 months later, that decision looks a lot smarter.
Markkanen is dealing with yet another injury, and this one will keep him out for at least a month. ESPN’s Shams Charania reported Wednesday that Markkanen suffered a non-displaced fracture in his hand, adding him to a Jazz frontcourt already missing Jaren Jackson Jr. and Jusuf Nurkic.
It’s the latest setback in a stretch that has made Markkanen a far riskier bet than he looked during his All-Star and Most Improved Player season in 2022-23. Over the last three years, he has played just 55, 47 and 42 games. His production has stayed fairly steady on the box score, but his shooting numbers have slipped a bit.
The bigger problem for Utah is that Markkanen still hasn’t played in a playoff game in his 10-year career. That streak looks likely to continue this season, too, with the Jazz off to a 1-10 start and sitting last in the Western Conference. The only real way that changes is if Markkanen gets moved before February’s mid-season deadline.
That’s still possible, but his trade value has taken a hit. Utah missed its best chance to cash in during the 2024 offseason, when Golden State was the main team pushing for him. A deal likely would have required Podziemski, Jonathan Kuminga and future draft capital, with this year’s pick potentially included as well before it turned into Yaxel Lendeborg.
Podziemski is the name that sparked the most debate among Warriors fans at the time, and plenty of people around the fanbase questioned Golden State for not putting him in the package. But with the way things have played out, the Warriors’ caution looks justified.
Nobody is saying Podziemski is the better player right now. Still, he is six years younger, costs about $40 million less this season, and even when his five-year, $110 million extension begins next year, he’ll still make less than half of Markkanen’s annual salary. That’s a strong case for value.
And then there’s Lendeborg. If Golden State had sent out the picks that would have been needed in a Markkanen deal, it may have lost the chance to draft him. The 11th overall pick carries more value than Markkanen at this point, and he may already be the better long-term player.
In Other News...
Warriors Face A Draymond Green Question They Never Expected
Draymond Greens name surfacing in trade chatter is the kind of development the Warriors never really expected to be managing this time of year. According to Sam Amick of The Athletic, the Sacramento Kings have interest in Green ahead of the February mid-season deadline, which immediately turns a familiar Golden State cornerstone into an unexpected talking point as the market starts to take shape.
A deal between the Warriors and Kings would come with plenty of hurdles, from fit to contract considerations, and the idea still feels more like a difficult possibility than a clear path forward. Still, the fact that Green is being discussed at all says plenty about how quickly the deadline can force even the most established teams into uncomfortable territory, and there has been no official trade confirmed. [Read more 🡒]
Warriors Injury Situation Just Made This Rockets Test Feel Different
The Warriors are heading into the first stop of a five-game road trip in Houston with plenty of momentum, but also a little more uncertainty than usual. Both Golden State and the Rockets are 8-3, and the matchup already had the feel of an early measuring-stick game before the injury report started to pile up for both sides. The Warriors have won eight straight, while Houston is coming off a win over the Denver Nuggets, so this one arrives with real weight even before the ball goes up.
Will Richard is among the names to watch after being listed as questionable with a left thumb UCL tear, and he is part of a broader list of players on both teams dealing with availability concerns. For Golden State, that adds another layer to a road test that was already going to say plenty about where this group stands early in the season. A strong start has given the Warriors some breathing room, but the kind of game they get in Houston could hinge as much on who is available as on who is playing best. [Read more 🡒]
Warriors Backcourt Plans Could Suddenly Revive A Familiar Reunion Talk
The Warriors eight-game surge has only sharpened the sense that this group is back in the kind of position where bigger roster ideas start to surface. After the win over New Orleans, Golden State is once again being mentioned in the same breath as high-end names such as LeBron James and Anthony Davis, which tells you how quickly the conversation can shift when a team starts stacking victories and looking ahead to the next offseason.
Jordan Poole has also re-entered the picture in a way that would have sounded unlikely not long ago, with the former Warrior saying he would be open to a return as a free agent. If Golden State does end up with more salary cap flexibility next offseason, the front office may have more room to explore familiar paths as well as splashier ones, and that is the kind of backdrop that keeps reunion talk alive even when the roster is already rolling. [Read more 🡒]