Fansided · Feb 2
Jazz's controversial Lauri Markkanen strategy vindicated by wild numbers
Los Angeles Clippers v Utah Jazz | Alex Goodlett/GettyImagesThere's no getting around this. It's frustrating to watch Lauri Markkanen on the bench for supposed "injuries" again and again, but everyone knows why the Utah Jazz are doing it: benching him gives them more ping pong balls in the lottery.
Why not trade him then? Well, besides the low likelihood that Utah would get a player as good as him (let alone better), their plan is to flip things next season. Certain numbers show why the Jazz want to keep Markkanen around in the long term while also keeping him on the bench in the short term.