Lauri Markkanen At the beginning of the week, the NBA club Utah Jazz once again feasted on the performances of its Finnish stars, when Utah, led by Markkanen, bullied one of the NBA’s best defensive teams, the Miami Heat.
Markkanen scored 38 points, but Utah lost 115–119. He dunked three times in the match and made six shots from behind the three-point arc.
– Did you know that Lauri is on his way to becoming the only seven-foot-tall (213 centimeters) player to have 100 dunks and 200 three-pointers in one season, Jazz asked his Twitter followers (you’ll go to another service).
However, Utah was too moderate in its adulation. Basketball-Reference’s statistics page (you are moving to another service), The Scoren (you will switch to another service) and ESPN According to the Salt City Hoops website (you will be redirected to another service) no one has previously managed 100 dunks and 200 threes in one season in the NBA.
In addition to Markkanen, only one player in NBA history has been able to make 100 dunks and 180 three-pointers: Kevin Durant. The superstar currently representing Phoenix has reached 100 dunks and 180 triples twice.
Kevin Durant (Oklahoma) 2013-14: 146 dunks on 192 threes
Kevin Durant (Okhoma) 2015-2016: 106 dunks on 186 threes
Lauri Markkanen (Utah) 2022-2023: 104 dunks from 186 threes
During his peak years in the 2013–14 season, Durant won the NBA’s Most Valuable Player award and was also the league’s basketball king. For the second time, Durant succeeded in the trick in the 2015–16 season.
So what is the meaning of these readings? Nothing exactly.
However, the statistic describes Markkanen’s exceptionality in the world’s toughest basketball league. Very rarely do players top both of these statistics, but Markkanen does. He is 16th in the series in doubles and 12th in triples.
It’s no wonder that Markkanen has been the NBA’s most efficient scorer this season. Markkanen has scored 25.4 points and taken 8.5 rebounds per game this season.
For tougher point and rebound readings (you switch to another service) with the Finn’s shooting accuracy (50% of shots in game situations, 40% of threes and 85% of free throws), in NBA history he has only been able to Larry Bird.
The Boston NBA legend won three championships in his career and was named the league’s most valuable player three times. He has been elected to the NBA Hall of Fame, as was probably Kevin Durant in his time.
When you look at Markkanen’s throwing chart this season, the Finn has been accurate from almost every side of the field. The most shots have also come from the most effective positions from behind the three-point arc and right under the basket.
Markkanen has a high point average for one throw this season. Of those who have scored at least 20 points per game, only three players have averaged more points per throw than Markkanen.
The previously mentioned Durant, the Serbian chosen as the NBA’s most valuable player in the previous two seasons Nikola Jokic as well as a four-time champion quarterback Stephen Curry.
There have been quite a few basketball parties in the NBA this season anyway. Markkanen is in 14th place in the NBA’s point statistics. With his current average of 25.4 points, Markkanen would have been seventh in the points statistics in his rookie season in 2017-2018.
The Finn’s importance to Utah has been almost irreplaceable. When Markkanen is on the court, Utah plays like the top team in the NBA. Without Markka, Utah is at the bottom of the league when comparing plus-minus statistics. When the Finn plays, Utah scores 4.1 more points per 100 possessions than the opponent. Without Markka, Utah scores 6.5 points less than its opponents per 100 possessions.
100 possessions is a metric used in NBA team statistics when searching for common averages. NBA teams have had over 100 possessions per game this season. Utah has had the 12th most possessions, about 104.2 possessions per game.
Contrary to expectations, Utah is still fighting with Markkanen for a place in the playoffs, despite the transfer deadline and injuries. Utah is currently the first team to be eliminated, i.e. in 11th place in the Western Conference.
However, getting to the playoffs is still a really big stone behind. The team has 13 games left in the regular season. Utah’s schedule for the rest of the season is the toughest in the entire league, when you look at the opponents’ winning percentages (you go to another service).
You can find the NBA standings at this link.
Lauri Markkanen’s Utah will next face one of the NBA’s top teams, Boston, Finland early on Sunday at 3:00 a.m.