Star forward available for trade! Jazz in! Do Lakers have a chance?

According to "Sports Illustrated" reporter Mannix:

"The Jazz rejected the Warriors' offer for Markkanen in the summer of 2024. They originally thought a better market would emerge. But it turned out not to be the case. Now the outside world generally believes that the Jazz are open to Markkanen."

For this forward player who once played All-Stars, he may be put on the trade shelf at any time in the new season. But this news also needs to be verified. In the past few seasons, Markkanen has been announced to be on the trade shelf more than once, but has never been able to be truly traded.

Is this really a deal? Or is it just the Jazz asking the market for prices?

If they really decide to trade this time, will other teams have the opportunity to profit from it?

Below, let’s discuss the potential opportunities behind the Jazz’s trade news:

Let’s take a look at Markkanen’s performance last season. He averaged 19 points and 5.9 rebounds per game, shooting 42.3% from the field, 34.6% from three-point range, and 57.1% from the field, which sounds okay. But compared to his past peak period, this is already his lowest level since the 2020-21 season.

But looking at the league as a whole, this level can only be regarded as mediocre; coupled with the contract issue, it is really difficult to deal with.

Currently Markkanen is still carrying a four-year, 194 million contract, with an annual salary of 46.39 million for the new season, ranking 17th on the league's salary list, and the annual salary for the next two years will also be at the 50 million level; from this salary level, most of them are absolute core players such as Jokic, Tatum, and Antetokounmpo, but Markkanen is very embarrassing. The high salary is inefficient and the price/performance ratio is not high. For a bad team like the Jazz, leaving him will not be much cost-effective.

Therefore, it is reasonable for the Jazz to create Markkanen's trading enthusiasm every year. And this only reveals a trading signal. It does not mean that they have to send him away. It just allows the market to see his potential value. Once the regular season data rebounds, the transaction will be able to get more chips back. It is a standard "leave the market first, then raise the price" strategy.

After the Markkanen trade news is confirmed, opportunities for other teams may appear. As the league's traffic controller, we can discuss the Lakers' opportunities in this.

For a team led by James + Doncic, although the Lakers are at the transition point between the old and new cores, they are not completely in ruins. During this handover process, their record pressure still exists. And if there is an opportunity to recruit helpers for Doncic in advance, the Lakers should still actively pursue it.

Only in anticipation of this deal, their target is not the 28-year-old Markkanen, but the 24-year-old Walker Kessler next to him.

Display Kessler's basic statistics last season:

He averaged 30 minutes per game, with personal data of 11.1 points, 12.2 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 2.4 blocks, and a shooting percentage of 66.3%. In addition to a stable double-double performance, what is more important is his ability to defend the basket. His average blocks per game ranks second in the league, second only to Bunyama.

From the Lakers' perspective, their interior rim protection has always been a flaw. If they can capture Kessler amid the Jazz's trade wave, it will be even more powerful for the team's defensive system.

From the Jazz's perspective, Markkanen has been put on the trade shelf, and Kessler, as a role center, is also likely to be traded. What is even more noteworthy is that the contract extension negotiations between Kessler and the Jazz have not been smooth, and he may not necessarily be able to occupy a core position in the Jazz's future plans.

To put it simply, if the Jazz choose a profit-maximizing strategy, the Lakers have every opportunity to profit from it.

As for the expected operation of this transaction, Walker Kessler is still in the rookie contract period. The Lakers can add young strength and reasonable draft picks to promote the transaction, and there is quite ample room for operation. As long as it is done properly, the buying threshold is low, and the execution difficulty is not high, it is definitely a good opportunity for the Lakers to provide help in times of need.

Taken together, the Lakers have three points worth noting about this potential trade opportunity:

The players have excellent combat capabilities, especially the ability to protect the basket, which the Lakers currently lack the most;

The Jazz are open to trade, and any player in the team may become a bargaining chip;

The trading chips are easy to balance, and the Lakers' operation is not complicated.

The most critical one is mainly the first point: players are combat power. The Lakers' need for a center has always existed. If Ayton's defensive performance in the new season is average, then Kessler's potential value will be obvious.

To sum up, the Jazz have hinted at Markkanen's trading intention. On the surface, it is a deal with the team's high-paid players, but it actually releases a bigger message: the team's trading window has been opened, and any valuable player may become a trading chip.

So the question also arises, will the Lakers take action?

From a fan's perspective, do you hope to see Kessler put on the purple and gold jersey and become an inside option?

No matter what the final answer is, this trading game is likely to be the most hot topic worthy of attention in the new season:

Opportunities are fleeting, and in many cases, decision-making attitude directly means victory or defeat.