Lauri Markkanen shakes his head. His team has just lost the last match in Susijeng’s training at the World Cup camp. Alex Murphy has managed to get out of the hunt and beat the donk while the buzzer is ringing in Lohja’s Kisakallio.
After the actual practice, each player draws his own throwing practice. From Markkas you can see a diverse cavalcade.
Fullback legend and current Susijeng coaching team member Teemu Rannikko serves up the familiar accurate passes.
Markkanen bags threes both from the pass and from his own drive.
In addition to the right hand, the corindo is effectively created with the weaker left hand.
This is how the sock swings at its best! Five straight three sacks in 15 seconds.
There will be several hundred repetitions for a good half hour. The exercise ends with a dunk from your own pass through the plate.
Finland’s number one star is the last of Susijeng’s players to leave the dressing room.
Markkanen later describes that he dragged out the throwing practice longer than normal.
– It was a great feeling to get to play. We lost with a last-second basket. I wanted to break it down and throw more than normal, says Markkanen.
Very few of the throws come out of place. Markkanen emphasizes that the repetitions in training must be game-like.
– We also tired the body a bit. However, you have to be able to throw when you’re tired, Markkanen describes his way of thinking.
Last season, Markkanen was one of the most effective scorers both in the European Championships and in the world’s toughest basketball league, the NBA.
Markkanen averaged 25.6 points per game last NBA season.
His field goal percentage was 49.9, three-pointers 39.1 and free throw percentage 87.5.
Compared to the number of throws, the hit accuracy was really hard and only seven other players reached similar numbers.
In last year’s European Championships, only the Greek superstar played with a higher point average than Markka Giannis Antetokounmpo, who is not participating in the World Cup this time. Also a Serbian superstar Nikola Jokic as well as the grandeur of the United States stars are missing.
Of the 30 best scorers in the NBA last season, only five are playing in the World Cup. Only Slovenia is a tougher NBA scorer than Markka Luka Doncic and Canada Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Markkanen can very well even win the basketball kingship of the World Cup.
Everything starts from the fact that Markkanen is a very accurate thrower for a 213-centimeter player.
Susijeng’s head coach Lassi Tuovi says that Juniors should focus on rhythm when throwing Markkanen.
– It is equal and fast. The ball doesn’t stop. The performance is not very angular. At Lauri, every throw looks the same. There will be no changes, Tuovi estimates.
– The ball doesn’t go too low, it doesn’t stop and it isn’t tamed.
Markkanen himself highlights three things he focuses on when throwing.
– You have to get your legs involved and get strength from them. For me, the biggest thing is to get a curve in the throw as well. Ihaan will not have a wide ball, because the percentages will be worse. You also have to come to the end so that you don’t pull your hands away, Markkanen opens his world of thought.
Replays in, lads
Lauri Markkanen trained himself from a young age in all kinds of conditions. He went to throw a basketball in the yard of his home, even though it could be closer to 15 degrees below zero.
Markkanen’s career is also characterized by the fact that he trained versatilely. Even though Markkanen was the tallest on his junior team, he handled the ball a lot and acted as a playmaker as well.
Markkanes himself has one message for all basketball juniors.
– Hard work always wins over talent. Also have fun, advises Markkanen.
According to Markkanen, versatility helps to have fun.
– I myself like basketball as much as before. That way you can train different throws and do extra after training.
Markkanen emphasizes the importance of repetitions in why he has become one of the most effective basket makers in the world at the moment.
– Jobs have been done for a long time and they just continue. My mindset is that I will work even harder so that I can repeat last season again. I want to improve even more than last year, because I know I’m a measuring stick for my opponents, says Markkanen.
Tuovi brings out the self-confidence gained through repetitions.
– Lauri believes in his own throw. He doesn’t think about whether something needs to be fixed. Lauri trusts that the basic play is so strong that the ball goes into the basket.
Markkanes has an exceptional talent
Corinteo is also about much more than the fact that the throw goes nicely into the air. One thing is decision-making, which there is very little time for in the NBA or in value tournaments.
Markkanen himself reminds that a lot of foresight is needed in Corinthian work.
– Of course you have to react, but you also have to anticipate the opponent. You have to know what you are trying to achieve even before you get the ball. In training, repetitions are made. We try to simulate a similar situation as in the game, so that the performances come from the back of the head in the game, says Markkanen.
According to Tuovi, Markkanen has taken great strides specifically in anticipating situations.
– Lauri is extremely good at anticipating and reading situations in advance. He doesn’t need the ball in his hand to start performing. He prepares and misleads the defender, says Tuovi.
In last fall’s European Championships, we saw several examples of how Markkanen can create good scoring situations without the ball.
Many people only remember the highlights of Markkanen’s sharp dunks and triples, but that’s not the whole picture.
– A big part of Lauri’s highlights comes from the fact that he is ahead of others. Lauri can then cut to the basket or make a throw. He is an extremely good player and an exceptional superstar in that he doesn’t need the ball in his hands all the time, says Tuovi.
Throws from the most effective coring areas
Markkanen’s efficiency is also due to the fact that he takes his solutions from the most effective basket-making areas in basketball.
Suomalaistahtih makes baskets both from close range and from behind the three-point line. He is also an exceptional player in this sense.
In the previous NBA season, Markkanen drove the ball into the basket more than 100 times and bagged more than 200 three-pointers. No one in NBA history has been able to achieve a similar balance.
From the visualization below, you can clearly see how, as a whole, Markkanen’s throws have come from the most effective basket-making areas and also the changes in different teams and in different seasons.
In his first Utah season (2022–2023), Markkanen threw and succeeded the most in his NBA career from close to the basket, in the three-second range.
The proportion of three-point shots still remained high. Markkanen played the 2021-2022 season in Cleveland and the 2017-2021 seasons in Chicago.
Teammates are also needed
Basketball is also first and foremost a team game. Even the brightest stars don’t win every game by themselves. In the case of Markkanen, there has been a lot of talk about how he needs a strong team concept for his success.
For example, in the Vime NBA season, almost 75 percent of Markkanen’s baskets came from a teammate’s pass.
Markkanen himself remembers to thank his teammates in Kisakallio, while at the same time Susijeng’s captain Sasu Salin joking behind the TV camera.
– I’ve learned a lot to create my own shots, but a lot of baskets come from being in the right place at the right time. Such suits also provide balls for good goal-scoring situations. Of course it makes it easier, Markkanen smiles.
Head coach Tuovi also signs that Markkanen needs his teammates to excel.
– Our task is to help Lauri in good situations, Tuovi sums up the spirit of the game before the World Cup.
Speaking of team play, the head coach sees another kind of exceptionality in Markkase.
– Lauri’s strength is that he passes to the next player in a better place, even though he is a top scorer. At the same time, Lauri thanks his friend. It’s definitely nice to work with a guy like that. This nature of a team player makes Lauri even more exceptional, Tuovi emphasizes.
Lauri Markkanen and Susijengi will start the World Basketball Championships in Okinawa, Japan on Friday, August 25. In the opening match, they will face medal favorite Australia. The match starts at 11:00. You can see Susijengi and Lauri Markkanen’s highlights fresh on the website and in the app.