The NBA game has changed in the last 20 years. The spacing has got wider, the big men got skinnier, and the three-point attempts grew. This is where Lauri Markkanen fits perfectly.
Markkanen comes into the draft having been real successful at Arizona. He draws comparisons to Dirk because of his European decent, his height, and his shooting ability. While he isn't as good at the age that Dirk was coming into the league, Markkanen definitely shows promise.
Height: 7'0"
Weight: 230 pounds
College averages: 15.6 ppg, 7.2 rpg
Strengths
Lauri Markkanen can shoot the lights out of the ball.
During warmups, at times he doesn't even attempt shots inside the three-point line. He sits in a corner and practices his spot-up shooting. Markkanen's statistics prove that. He shot 49 percent from the field, to go with 42 percent from three. He wasn't used as often or as effective in Arizona as he should have been, because his shooting ability brings a big defender way out to the perimeter, giving teammates a lot more space to work in.
On offense, he'll be used as a Pick And Pop guy mainly. He has the ability to post-up a bit, but his main game is outside the three-point line. He'll be best used early on if he gets to play alongside a play-making point guard. He isn't at the stage of his career yet where he can do it all himself.
He's got a lot to learn before then.
Weaknesses
A weak point for Markkanen would be on the defensive end. While he isn't terrible at it, he won't give you much on defense. He can switch and hold his own, but if he switches onto a point guard, he will be in some trouble. Secondly, Markkanen doesn't have a huge base in his body structure.
This means when he tries to absorb contact; he tends to have his shot altered frequently. He has the ability to put weight on his frame when he gets to the league, so it will be able to be fixed. This will limit him in his first couple of seasons, but in certain team compositions, he should be able to be used on defense efficiently.
Markkanen has issues contributing if he isn't scoring. He doesn't have the play-making ability that other power forwards have. He's a spot-up shooter coming into the league, and it's hard to say that he'd be anything better than that shortly.
All in all, Markkanen could be really valuable to a good team that wants to take steps to being great. He can fit in well in any system and offers elite shooting ability. The best teams for him right now would be the Hornets or Pistons. Both those teams could use a real shooter to add to their pick and pop.
