Former Chicago Bull Lauri Markkanen is on the brink of a career-year in the 2022-23 season.
Through 13 games, the Utah Jazz forward is averaging a career-high 22.7 points on 52.7% shooting from the field along with 8.8 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game.
Markkanen, who spent the first four years of his career in Chicago, recently spoke with Shams Charania of Stadium on his hot start to the season with the Jazz and his time in Chicago.
“I’m the person who always looks in the mirror first and tries to figure it out. So then, when it was hard, I think I just put even more pressure on myself to make the next play. If you don’t get as many shots, you better make these shots count,” Markkanen said.
Markkanen was drafted by the Bulls with the No. 7 pick in the 2017 NBA draft, averaging 15.6 points and 7.1 rebounds during his four-year stint in Chicago before being traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2021 offseason.
The Jazz forward struggled in his final two years with the Bulls, as his role was diminished, starting just 26 of 51 games played in his final season while his shot attempts decreased by five over the last two years.
“It was just a vicious circle trying to figure it out. It was a tough year, and I think it got to the point that it wasn’t that much fun anymore, the last two years in Chicago.”
Check out the full interview below.
Utah’s burgeoning star Lauri Markkanen sits down with @Stadium: “(Tanking chatter) definitely feeds us. We hate to see that every morning when we win, we see that it’s a surprise.” Also: Jazz-Cavs trade and similarities, All-Star goal, joyless finish with the Bulls, much more. pic.twitter.com/VHWzkiKF1x
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) November 8, 2022
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