Mystery of Markkanen continues to perplex Chicago Bulls
Lauri Markkanen has been hailed as the funniest guy on the Bulls, by none other than Zach LaVine.
In interviews, though, Markkanen has always been guarded. He's friendly enough but typically reacts to attempts at a serious question with a humorous answer. It's often hard to tell how he's dealing with NBA life in a new country.
The Markkanen mystery carries over to the court. On Wednesday in Washington, the 7-foot Finland native produced his second 30-point game of the season. But are we any closer to figuring out what sort of player he will be?
Basically, it's a tale of two seasons. Markkanen's second NBA season was impressive by any measurement. He averaged 18.7 points and 9.0 rebounds as a 21-year-old.
In comparison, Dirk Nowitzki produced 17.5 points and 6.5 boards. In his third season, Dirk improved to 21.8 and 9.2, was an all-star in his fourth season and never faded until age finally caught up to him.
As a rookie, Markkanen knocked down 145 baskets from 3-point range, which ranks as seventh most in a season by a player 7-feet or taller. Brook Lopez holds the record with 187, set last season in Milwaukee. Every entry between Nos. 2 and 12 on that list is either Nowitzki or Channing Frye, other than Markkanen at 7.
Clearly, Markkanen set the bar high. There aren't many close comparisons in NBA history for a guy with Markkanen's size and skills. In his second season, he was better than Nowitzki, Kristaps Porzingis, Andrea Bargnani, Danilo Gallinari, Rashard Lewis.
Markkanen's 15-game run of averaging 22 points and 13 rebounds last season briefly put him in elite territory with guys like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Joel Embiid and Anthony Davis.
Moving on to this season, Markkanen's numbers have dropped to 14.8 points and 6.9 rebounds. His field-goal attempts are down and his 3-point percentage dropped from .361 to .333.
His two 30-point games were predictable based on matchups. In the opener at Charlotte, when Markkanen piled up 35 points and 17 boards, he was guarded most of the night by 6-7 rookie P.J. Washington. The Wizards were short-handed on the front line Wednesday, which meant Markkanen went head to head with fellow Northern European Davis Bertans (Latvia) most of the night.
So why isn't he doing that more often? Why during the past 13 games has Markkanen collected 4 or fewer rebounds six times? Here's a few theories:
Theory 1: The league has figured him out
If you forget last season happened and just focus on Markkanen this year, a natural conclusion is he's a stereotypical European player. That is, he's a finesse player who doesn't like physical contact.
That's why we could see a big game coming against Bertans. Some of Markkanen's best early performances were against Porzingis. He seems most comfortable playing against European players.
Markkanen doesn't finish well in traffic, hasn't shot more than 5 free throws in a game during the past month and can often be seen watching rebound battles from a safe distance.
A huge play late in last week's win over the Clippers was a good illustration. While Kris Dunn jumped in between three Clippers to keep an offensive rebound alive, the ball eventually bounced to Markkanen, who was standing at the foul line not getting involved. But he grabbed the loose ball and dished it to Denzel Valentine, who hit the tying 3-pointer.
It's possible after Markkanen's huge stretch last season that teams changed their game plan to focus on getting more physical with him. It's something he'll have to get used to.
Theory 2: He's playing through an injury
Early in the season, Markkanen suffered an oblique strain during a game, was visibly grimacing on the sideline and went to the locker room to get checked out.
It turned out, he never missed a game and the injury was largely forgotten.
Ask Markkanen about it and he'll never say it's bothering him (see above). Coach Jim Boylen praised him at one point for learning to play through injuries. Certainly, it's a big deal that Markkanen is one of seven Bulls who have played in all 30 games.
But it's possible he's not 100 percent and the lack of rebounds can be explained by this lingering injury.
Theory 3: He's getting used to the offense
John Paxson brought this up in our interview last week. The Bulls started the season with an offense focused on more 3-point shooting. It incorporated elements brought from Brooklyn by new assistant Chris Fleming and from Houston by Roy Rogers.
Zach LaVine seems to be getting comfortable in the offense, but Markkanen might be still in a stage where he's thinking too much and not reacting naturally, which could help explain why his shot attempts are down.
The true answer may be a combination of all three. Either way, Markkanen's first three seasons have been special. How special he'll be over the long run is up to him, and there's no hurry. The current state of the Bulls is a work in slow progress.
• Twitter: @McGrawDHBulls