NBA Rumors: Jazz's Lauri Markkanen Candidate for Contract Extension in 2024

The Utah Jazz utilized part of their cap space this offseason to renegotiate Jordan Clarkson's contract for 2023-24 while tacking on two extension years.

They may look to do the same with Lauri Markkanen next summer.

HoopsHype's Michael Scotto and Yossi Gozlan reported they expect the Jazz to enter into extension talks with the player in 2024, when only $6 million of his $18 million salary is guaranteed.

Markkanen emerged as an All-Star during his first season in Utah, averaging 25.6 points. 8.6 rebounds and 1.9 assists while shooting 39.2 percent from three-point range.

The star turn came largely as a complete surprise, as the Jazz essentially acquired Markkanen as a salary throw-in as part of the trade that sent Donovan Mitchell to Cleveland. Markkanen had never averaged more than 18.7 points per game in a season and was under the 15 PPG mark each of the previous three campaigns. His breakout was the biggest reason the Jazz finished a respectable 37-45 after being projected to be one of the NBA's worst teams.

Utah is expected to have significant cap space again next summer, which is the only way the team could do a renegotiate-and-extend with Markkanen. It's possible the Jazz could reach a contract with Markkanen that pays him well below his expected free-agent salary by giving him a significant bump for 2024-25. Something like a four-year, $150 million extension after bumping Markkanen's salary into the $30 million range for next season would put him well below his max for the ensuing years while giving him a massive increase in salary.