Report: Warriors submitted ‘substantial’ Markkanen trade offer to Jazz Originally appeared in NBC Bay Area Sports
While Dub Nation eagerly awaits updates on the Lauri Markkanen trade draftGeneral manager Mike Dunleavy and Warriors management appear to have done their part in the effort to get The star ahead.
Golden State has introduced the Utah Jazz a substantial offer for the NBA All-Star center, The Athletic’s Tony Jones confirmed Friday During an interview on 95.7 The Game.
“Golden State has an offer on the table and I think it’s a substantial offer,” Jones said. “The Jazz can only answer for themselves what they’re looking for.”
Jones, who covers the Jazz, further explained that while current offers from Golden State and other teams are heavily based on draft picks, Utah could look for an additional asset, such as a promising youngster, to grow with the franchise.
“I think the level of offers out there is substantial,” Jones said. “I think they’re largely based on selection. I think with a couple of offers, there’s one or two young players who have the potential to grow throughout their career.”
Even though Golden State’s offer is reportedly strong, the path to landing Markkanen could be complicated due to the draft capital the Warriors have at their disposal.
“I think one thing that complicates Golden State’s package is that they (the Warriors) basically only have two unprotected first-round picks (2026 and 2028),” Jones said. “If you look at what Mikal Bridges asked for a couple weeks ago, he asked for five (first-round picks), and it wasn’t just five first-round picks. It was five first-round picks, plus trades, plus Bojan Bogdanović. I think all of that has to be taken into account when you think about what Lauri Markkanen could potentially ask for.”
While Markkanen appears to be the Warriors’ big acquisition, both they and the Jazz aren’t desperate to get a deal done right away. There’s likely to be plenty of back-and-forth between the two front offices, with a lengthy negotiation likely to precede the acquisition. any potential trade.