Lauri Markkanen: Houston Rockets
The Chicago Bulls selected Lauri Markkanen with the 7th overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft. He has made good strides as a stretch big, but the presence of Nikola Vucevic will relegate him to the second unit in Chicago. The Bulls tried pairing them together for a stretch but it was a disaster defensively.
With an exit looking very possible, a team can strike and snag the 24-year old away from Chicago. That team will be the Houston Rockets.
The Rockets are in the early stages of a rebuild. They added four players in the first round of the 2021 NBA Draft, selecting Jalen Green 2nd overall, acquiring the draft rights to No. 16 pick Alperen Sengun, selecting Usman Garuba at No. 23 and closing it out with Josh Christopher at No. 24.
Lauri Markkanen still fits their timeline and gives them some floor spacing that they need to open up driving lanes for John Wall, Kevin Porter Jr. and their newest perimeter players in Green and Christopher.
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After the success that Kelly Olynyk found in Houston, Lauri Markkanen should be excited at the opportunity to play there. He could be the team’s future at power forward and gives them insurance in the frontcourt should they receive an offer for Christian Wood that is too good to turn down.
