That idea seemed far-fetched a couple of seasons ago, when Lauri Markkanen — once considered the next great NBA ‘‘unicorn’’ — looked unhappy and broken in his final season with the Bulls in 2020-21.
Fast-forward to Monday, when Markkanen put on a clinic against his former team as a member of the Jazz.
A catch-and-shoot three-pointer 90 seconds into the game and a layup 30 seconds later. Then it was more long-distance shooting, shot after shot, dagger after dagger.
By the time the teams went into their locker rooms at halftime, Markkanen had scored 24 points on 9-for-10 shooting, including 5-for-6 from three-point range.