Should the Celtics kick the tires on Rudy Gobert or Lauri Markkanen?

Big men Rudy Gobert and Lauri Markkanen might be on the move this summer — should the Boston Celtics make a call?

We haven’t even (technically) finished the 2019-20 NBA season, and we’re already hearing rumbles of big men who might not be long for their current situation — should the Boston Celtics inquire?

On one hand, we have Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert, whose antics may led to the suspension of the current season — and definitely  irked his teammates. This has reportedly made his tenure in Salt Lake City a potentially tenuous one according to the Athletic’s Shams Charania, Tony Jones and Sam Amick.

On the other we have Lauri Markkanen, Chicago Bulls big man, who is so frustrated with his current situation “he’d rather be elsewhere” if things don’t change, according to the Chicago Sun-Times Joe Cowley.

Would either make sense as a Celtics trade target?

Let’s start with the big fish, Gobert. Putting aside the mistake — not a small issue, mind you — the fit isn’t a terrible one, if not idea for how Boston usually plays.

The notion that the Celtics need to ‘consolidate’ their frontcourt still persists despite a mountain of evidence to the contrary, and Gobert’s hefty paycheck — $26.5 million next season — would require one of Gordon Hayward, Kemba Walker, Jaylen Brown or Marcus Smart and at least one other player.

And for Hayward, it would also require he opt-in to the last year of his current deal only to be traded back to a team he left in free agency. There would need to be salary ballast coming back for the Indiana native, too, which adds more complexity to an already-complex hypothetical.

Gobert is probably not a better value with only a single year left on his current deal than any of the other players, and while younger than Hayward by more than a year, it’s not certain he’ll retain the same value as he ages — assuming either re-signs with Boston in this hypothetical.

Occam’s razor tells us not to spend too much time with Gobert’s situation, but Markkanen presents a different picture.

Nagging but minor injuries and perhaps his situation have actually seen the Finnisher’s production decline in his third year — but not enough so as to be alarming, either.

In his second season, the Vantaa native scored 18.7 points and 9 rebounds per game, dropping to 14.7 and 6.3 this season with roughly the same amount of floor time. Could a change of scenery send his numbers back on an upward curve?

And more importantly, what would it take to get him?

A former No. 7 pick slated to earn $6.7 million next season, matching salaries wouldn’t be difficult. But guessing what the Bulls want might be.

It’s possible the franchise — soon to be under new leadership with the hire of Arturas Karnisovas, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski — has no interest in dealing the 22-year-old big man.

But if he could be pried loose, he’d be an outstanding offensive big to use in alternation with and alongside defensively-oriented center Daniel Theis.

With three first round picks and not enough roster slots to house them without making moves, sweetening a package of any of a number of Celtics players on rookie deals would be easy to accomplish if they had a willing partner with similar valuations as Boston’s front office.

But it’s hard to say if that would be the case, especially while there’s still time for those big changes at the top of the Bulls organization to salvage the relationship of one of their better players and the franchise.

Of the two bigs with a chance to end up on the move, Markkanen is the one to watch. Just don’t get your hopes up — these things tend to get smoothed over more often than not.

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