This offseason the Jazz traded their two stars in Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell. After these moves were made, many expected Utah to blow up the roster and be a lottery team this season.
However, twelve games into the season the reality is totally different. Not only that the Jazz are not losing much, but they are actually one of the best teams in the Western Conference. Currently Utah is 9-3, having beaten the Lakers in their most recent game.
One of the players that ended up in Utah via the Mitchell trade was Lauri Markkanen. The 25-year-old Finnish power forward has blossomed on the Jazz. This season he is averaging career-high 21.9 points, 8.8 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 33.3 minutes per game for Utah.
He says that talks about his new team tanking this season gives motivation to the players. “(Tanking chatter) definitely feeds us. We hate to see that every morning when we win, we see that it’s a surprise,” told Shams Charania.
