Cavs: Instant reactions to the Lauri Markkanen sign and trade
Cavs: Instant rections to the Lauri Markkanen sign-and-trade: 2. Lauri Markkanen will help the spacing
Last season five players standing 7’0″ or taller hit at least 50 3-pointers. Only one cleared 100, and that was Chicago Bulls big Lauri Markkanen. The highest 3-point percentage of that group was 37.7 percent from Joel Embiid; Markkanen blew that away with his 40.2 percent mark from deep.
The Finnish forward is a true markksman (sorry, bad pun) with the height to shoot over virtually any defender. He is perhaps the only 7-footer in the league right now comfortable shooting off of screens and curls, and his pick-and-pop abilities are dangerous.
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The Cavs were the league’s worst shooting team last season, and only Kevin Love gave them consistent floor-spacing from a big position; even Love, when he wasn’t sitting out with an injury, shot only 36.5 percent from deep. This team needed a floor-spacing big to unlock lineups, especially ones with Isaac Okoro and Ricky Rubio.
The rest of Markkanen’s offensive game still needs to round out. He’s a poor passer and his upright stance causes trouble when he is trying to create with the ball in his hands. Yet in a league where spacing dictates everything else, his shooting ability from either big position will help make magic happen in Cleveland.