Utah
The Utah Jazz have a Lauri Markkanen question
If you haven’t read Sarah Todd’s latest article on the state of the Utah Jazz rebuild, get reading! Don’t worry, I’ll wait, just make sure you come back.
Thank you for coming back. Now, there’s some incredible stuff in there, and I may dissect it more in the future, but the first important quote that sticks out to me is this one about what Utah wants to do next year, even if they win the #1 pick this lottery and select Cooper Flagg. Todd writes:
Let’s start with what many view as the best case scenario — the Jazz getting the No. 1 overall pick in 2025 and selecting Cooper Flagg.
A starting lineup that features Flagg, Kessler and Markkanen sounds pretty incredible when thinking about future potential. But is that going to be a starting lineup that would win too many games? That’s a real fear, because the Jazz don’t want to give up their 2026 first-rounder.
AJ Dybantsa, the nation’s No. 1 basketball recruit, is presented at halftime of the BYU and Fresno State game at the Marriott Center in Provo on Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
I want to be clear here, the Jazz absolutely want to have another high draft pick in 2026. With players like AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson and Cameron Boozer all looking like future stars, there’s good reason for the Jazz to want to lose a lot of games next season.
And they want to.
The only thing that could keep the Jazz from tanking next season would be a wildly huge move, like Devin Booker, Jayson Tatum or another top-tier player becoming available. Though those things are possible (let’s not forget we saw Luka Doncic traded this year), they’re not likely.
If you didn’t know, Utah’s pick next year is top-8 protected. If they fall out of the top-8, it goes to the Oklahoma City Thunder. If that pick doesn’t convey, then it turns into second-round picks, and the saga of the Derrick Favors trade will be over. For me, hearing the Jazz absolutely want another top pick in next year’s draft is music to my ears. Utah is not even close to contending and the worst thing they can do is to jump the gun with just one pick. They are missing top-end talent, and the draft is the ONLY way for them to get that.
And barring a star player like Booker or Tatum from becoming available, as Todd says, they will plan on being bad again. So, how does that fit with Lauri Markkanen during this continued teardown? Todd writes:
So, then we look at what happens if the Jazz get Flagg but are too good to tank. The Jazz would obviously try to injury report their way into losses again, but keeping Flagg might require trading Markkanen or Kessler, and the Jazz already know that there is a market for both players and that teams will be willing to pay a pretty good price.
I’m not saying that the Jazz are definitely looking to trade either one of those guys. But it wouldn’t shock me if they did should they land Flagg. Of course, if they don’t get Flagg, they can probably massage their way through another tanking season without trading Markkanen or Kessler. Probably.
It certainly sounds like anything is on the table. Personally, if I had to choose between one of those players to move, I’m starting to think that player is Lauri Markkanen for a few reasons. The first is his new contract. Markkanen will be making around $50M in the next four years. Then, when Walker Kessler becomes contract eligible, It’s hard not to see him getting something like Isaiah Hartenstein got with the Oklahoma City Thunder (3 years, about $30M per year). So if Kessler gets something in that range along with Markkanen, that’s $80M tied between just those two. Now, that might work, but that’s going to be difficult for Utah to maneuver as things go along.
It gets even more difficult if the statistical trends we see from Markkanen continue. Markkanen is pretty lucky he’s gotten lost in the sauce in Utah. This season, Markkanen is shooting 42.5% from the field and 34.7% from three. And when you look at his defensive numbers, they’re not great. Whether it’s ESPN’s new net points analytics or Basketball Index’s D-Lebron, Markkanen grades out as a negative defender, sometimes a very negative defender. Not great when you consider he’s making max level money. And considering that we’ve learned that for him to succeed requires other players to set him up, it makes that contract look not great. Other people are starting to take notice, too. The Ringer’s top 100 has Lauri Markkanen at 48, and on Bill Simmons’s latest podcast, he got an honorable mention in their worst contract rankings. Not great.
Knowing that, and that the Utah Jazz do not have a cornerstone player, this offseason comes with a huge question: Should the Utah Jazz trade Lauri Markkanen?
Probably yes.
Utah
Utah man dies of injuries sustained in avalanche in Big Cottonwood Canyon
SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) — A man died after he was caught in an avalanche in Big Cottonwood Canyon over the weekend.
A spokesperson for the Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office confirmed on Thursday that Kevin Williams, 57, had died.
He, along with one other person, was hospitalized in critical condition after Saturday’s avalanche in the backcountry.
MORE | Big Cottonwood Canyon Avalanche
In an interview with 2News earlier this week, one of Williams’ close friends, Nate Burbidge, described him as a loving family man.
“Kevin’s an amazing guy. He’s always serving, looking for ways that he can connect with others,” Burbidge said.
A GoFundMe was set up to help support Williams’ family.
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Utah
911 recordings detail hours leading up to discovery of Utah girl, mother dead in Las Vegas
CONTENT WARNING: This report discusses suicide and includes descriptions of audio from 911 calls that some viewers may find disturbing.
LAS VEGAS — Exclusively obtained 911 recordings detail the hours leading up to the discovery of an 11-year-old Utah girl and her mother dead inside a Las Vegas hotel room in an apparent murder-suicide.
Addi Smith and her mother, Tawnia McGeehan, lived in West Jordan and had traveled to Nevada for the JAMZ cheerleading competition.
The calls show a growing sense of urgency from family members and coaches, and several hours passing before relatives learned what happened.
MORE | Murder-Suicide
Below is a timeline of the key moments, according to dispatch records. All times are Pacific Time.
10:33 a.m. — Call 1
After Addi and her mother failed to appear at the cheerleading competition, Addi’s father and stepmother called dispatch for a welfare check.
Addi and her mother were staying at the Rio hotel. The father told dispatch that hotel security had already attempted contact.
“Security went up and knocked on the door. There’s no answer or response it doesn’t look like they checked out or anything…”
11:18 a.m. and 11:27 a.m. — Calls 2 and 3
As concern grew, Addi’s coach contacted the police two times within minutes.
“We think the child possibly is in imminent danger…”
11:26 a.m. — Call 4
Addi’s stepmother placed another call to dispatch, expressing escalating concern.
“We are extremely concerned we believe that something might have seriously happened.”
She said that Tawnia’s car was still at the hotel.
Police indicated officers were on the way.
2:26 p.m. — Call 5
Nearly three hours after the initial welfare check request, fire personnel were en route to the scene. It appeared they had been in contact with hotel security.
Fire told police that they were responding to a possible suicide.
“They found a note on the door.”
2:35 p.m. — Call 6
Emergency medical personnel at the scene told police they had located two victims.
“It’s going to be gunshot wound to the head for both patients with notes”
A dispatcher responded:
“Oh my goodness that’s not okay.”
2:36 p.m. — Call 7
Moments later, fire personnel relayed their assessment to law enforcement:
“It’s going to be a murder suicide, a juvenile and a mother.”
2:39 p.m. — Call 8
Unaware of what had been discovered, Addi’s father called dispatch again.
“I’m trying to file a missing persons report for my daughter.”
He repeats the details he knows for the second time.
3:13 p.m. — Call 9
Father and stepmother call again seeking information and continue to press for answers.
“We just need some information. There was a room check done around 3:00 we really don’t know where to start with all of this Can we have them call us back immediately?”
Dispatch responded:
“As soon as there’s a free officer, we’ll have them reach out to you.”
4:05 p.m. — Call 10
More than an hour later, Addi’s father was put in contact with the police on the scene. He pleaded for immediate action.
“I need someone there I need someone there looking in that room”
The officer confirmed that they had officers currently in the room.
Addi’s father asks again what they found, if Addi and her mother are there, and if their things were missing.
The officer, who was not on scene, said he had received limited information.
5:23 p.m. — Call 11
Nearly seven hours after the first welfare check request, Addi’s grandmother contacted police, describing conflicting information circulating within the family.
“Some people are telling us that they were able to get in, and they were not in the hotel room, and other people saying they were not able to get in the hotel room, and we need to know”
She repeated the details of the case. Dispatch said officers will call her back once they have more information.
Around 8:00 p.m. — Press Conference
Later that evening, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police held a news conference confirming that Addi and her mother, Tawnia McGeehan, were found dead inside the hotel room.
The investigation remains ongoing.
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Utah
Ban on AI glasses in Utah classrooms inches closer to passing
SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) — AI glasses could allow you to get answers, snap photos, access audio and take phone calls—and now a proposal moving through the legislature would ban the glasses from Utah school classrooms.
“I think it’s a great idea,” said Kizzy Guyton Murphy, a mother who accompanied her child’s class on a field trip to the state Capitol on Wednesday. “You can’t see inside what the student is looking at, and it’s just grounds for cheating.”
Mom Tristan Davies Seamons also sees trouble with AI glasses.
“I don’t think they should have any more technology in schools than they currently have,” she said.
Her twin daughters, fourth graders Finley and Grayson, don’t have cell phones yet.
“Not until we’re like 14,” said Grayson, adding they do have Chromebooks in school.
2News sent questions to the Utah State Board of Education:
- Does it have reports of students using AI glasses?
- Does it see cheating and privacy as major concerns?
- Does it support a ban from classrooms?
Matt Winters, USBE AI specialist, said the board has not received reports from school districts of students with AI glasses.
“Local Education Agencies (school districts) have local control over these decisions based on current law and code,” said Winters. “The Board has not taken a position on AI glasses.
MORE | Utah State Legislature:
Some districts across the country have reportedly put restrictions on the glasses in schools.
“I think it should be up to the teachers,” said Briauna Later, another mother who is all for preventing cheating, but senses a ban could leave administrators with tired eyes.
“It’s one more thing for the administration to have to keep track of,” said Later.
The proposal, HB 42, passed the House and cleared a Senate committee on Wednesday.
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