Few people expected the Utah Jazz to do anything positive this season after they traded All-Stars Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell last summer.
But although they missed the play-in tournament with a 37-45 record, one of their players won a major NBA award on Monday.
Forward Lauri Markkanen, who arrived in the Mitchell trade with the Cleveland Cavaliers, was named the league’s Most Improved Player.
LAURI MARKKANEN WINS THE 2023 NBA MOST IMPROVED PLAYER AWARD 👏 pic.twitter.com/Fnc8VOSLJR
— ESPN (@espn) April 24, 2023
Some fans are very happy for him.
Well deserved and congratulations 🎉
— DJ10 (@DonJefferson60) April 24, 2023
Well deserved for Lauri. Chicago Bulls Legend pic.twitter.com/XHgNpNytqG
— DaWiddler (@DaWiddler) April 24, 2023
Markkanen averaged 25.6 points and 8.6 rebounds a game while shooting 49.9 percent from the field and 39.1 percent from 3-point range, and his scoring average this year was by far the highest of his career.
But the race for the Most Improved Player award was thought to be close, and some felt Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder should’ve won the award.
There are those who thought the New York Knicks’ Jalen Brunson should’ve claimed the award.
It should’ve been Brunson. I don’t mind the pick tho
— 88 (@StartGame88) April 24, 2023
I would’ve given it to Shai (non biased opinion) but Brunson deserved that award too. Brunson is the only one still playing on a team that didn’t make the playoffs. Also, if the Knicks were in the West would’ve been a top 4 seed in the West (based off this yrs actual records)
— N.Johnson (@_NikoJohnson) April 24, 2023
Knicks player winning an award pic.twitter.com/grNbz1sGrf
— YT Lucas4hr (@Lucas_2_Valid23) April 24, 2023
With Markkanen earning his first All-Star nod, the Jazz zoomed to a 10-3 start this season, and it looked like perhaps they would make the playoffs without having to first go through the play-in tournament.
Their collapse shortly afterward had some saying that Markkenen wasn’t deserving of the Most Improved Player award.
How his team literally crumbled and didn’t make the playoffs after being atop the western conference standings
— Lick Squad Papi (@BossmanBeezy98) April 24, 2023
Still, Utah’s future is bright, as he is just 25 years of age, and they have a few other bright young prospects, not to mention many draft picks in the years to come.
They received five first-round picks for Mitchell and five more for Gobert, and perhaps at least one of those could yield an All-Star player.
NEXT:
Jazz Star Wins NBA’s Most Improved Player Award
