Jazz Update Lauri Markkanen's Status for Suns Matchup
All-Star forward Lauri Markkanen has been upgraded to questionable heading into the Utah Jazz home game versus the Phoenix Suns on Monday night. This is an interesting development, with only eight games remaining in the season.
The social media buzz on the injury front was that the Jazz could opt to sit their leading scorer for the remainder of the season, but it appears that may not be the case. Despite losing their last three games, Utah is still within striking distance of sneaking into the play-in tournament.
Currently, the Jazz are 1.5 games behind the Los Angeles Lakers and Oklahoma City Thunder. Utah will play the Lakers twice and the Thunder once before it’s all said and done. Oklahoma City holds the advantage over Utah in the event of a tie, but the Jazz would have the tiebreaker versus L.A. if they win just one of the two games which are scheduled.
However, the Jazz aren’t free and clear of the injury bug yet. Jordan Clarkson (hand) and Collin Sexton (hamstring) were ruled out on Sunday. Clarkson hasn’t suited up since March 5, and one has to wonder if the former Sixth Man of the Year is opting to take the side of caution as a multi-million-dollar contract awaits in free agency this summer.
The Suns will still be without Kevin Durant (ankle), although former No. 1 pick Deandre Ayton has been tagged with a probable destination. Phoenix will be looking to lock down home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs.
Where it stands today, the Suns are the No. 4 seed but are only 1.5 games removed from being in the play-in tournament. It’s all set up to be a wild finish in a year where parity in the NBA is at an all-time high.
Tip-off is at 7:00 pm MDT.
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