Is Lauri Markkanen Playing Today? (Injury Update, Betting Impact for Jazz vs. 76ers)

The latest injury update for Utah Jazz big man Lauri Markkanen on Sunday against the Philadelphia 76ers.

Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen. / Rob Gray-Imagn Images

Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen is slated to miss his eighth consecutive game on Sunday when the Jazz take on the Philadelphia 76ers.

Markkanen is officially listed on the injury report for lower back injury management, and it's unclear when he will return to the lineup for the tanking Jazz this season. Utah is sitting other veterans on Sunday as well, as Jordan Clarkson, John Collins, Collin Sexton, and Walker Kessler have all been ruled out.

As a result, oddsmakers at DraftKings have set the Jazz as six-point underdogs in this matchup.

Utah is tanking for better odds in the league's draft lottery, and it has the worst record of any team in the Western Conference this season. Despite that, there could be some value in betting on the Jazz against this struggling Sixers team that has won just one of its last 10 games.

Earlier today, I shared in my NBA Best Bets column – Peter’s Points – why the Jazz are the team to back in this contest: 

There are a ton of players sitting out on both sides in the Utah Jazz-Philadelphia 76ers matchup on Sunday: 

• Out for Utah: Jordan Clarkson, John Collins, Collin Sexton, Lauri Markkanen, Walker Kessler
• Out for Philly: Paul George, Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid, Kyle Lowry, Eric Gordon, Jared McCain

However, there is one trend I can’t look past. The Sixers are just 1-13 against the spread when favored at home this season, and they’re down their three best players in this matchup. As bad as Utah has been this season, it is still over .500 against the spread as a road underdog, and it’s played plenty of games without those five veterans as it continues to tank for a better draft pick. 

The Sixers, on the other hand, have won just one of their last 10 games and rank 29th in the NBA in net rating (-11.4) over that stretch. I cannot back them to win this game – never mind win it by seven or more points – even against the Jazz.

Markkanen's status for the rest of the season could be up in the air if the Jazz truly commit to the tank. In the seven games that he's missed in a row, Utah is just 1-6 straight up, but four of those six losses have come by less than 10 points.

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Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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Find Peter Dewey's NBA betting record here (futures included). You can also follow my daily plays on  BetStamp here.

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