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The Warriors were very interested in Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen over the summer and were reportedly willing to make a big splash to land him.
Pairing a skilled forward like Markkanen alongside Steph Curry could have proved a winning combination for Golden State, with the team eager to maximise Steph’s championship window by putting him with another NBA star.
However, the trade didn’t go ahead and the Finnish native signed a $238 million extension to stay in Salt Lake City in August.
Markkanen recently discussed the Warriors’ interest in him for the first time publicly.
“I think [it means] you’ve done things right — that teams want you,” Markkanen told Marc Stein. “… I was able to kind of zone it out and really wait for my agent for what’s real. …Obviously, I wasn’t a free agent, but it was more I had the ability to do the contract and kind of had the choice. I don’t have to do it, but that was something I wanted to get done to stay with the team.”
Others teams, like the Spurs and Rockets, also showed interest in the All-Star, but the Dubs seemed to have the best offer – which was – Moses Moody, multiple first-round picks, multiple pick swaps and multiple second-round picks, Shams Charania reported at the time.
But, issues arose because the Jazz were more interested in Brandin Podziemski instead of Moody, which stalled the negotiations, Shams said.
Golden State drew a hard line there and opted to try and keep Podziemski. The team were thinking about including him, but not along with the entire draft capital listed above.
The Jazz didn’t budge on their terms apparently and the deal went cold.
Golden State made it clear over the summer that Podziemski is a value asset for the team in future, as they believe he has All-Star potential.
His name was constantly being mentioned in trade rumours and proposals, but the second-year guard was assured he was staying put.
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