Lauri Markkanen Does Something No Jazz Player Has Since Karl Malone

It's only taken eight games into the season for Utah Jazz star Lauri Markkanen to make some unique franchise history.

According to a post from the Jazz, Markkanen is the first Jazz player to reach 20-plus points in his first eight games of the season since Karl Malone did so nearly three decades ago.

"Lauri Markkanen has recorded 20+ points in all eight games to start the season. That is the longest such streak by a Jazz player since Karl Malone in 1997-98."

Lauri Markkanen has recorded 20+ points in all eight games to start the season. That is the longest such streak by a Jazz player since Karl Malone in 1997-98 🏔️#TakeNote pic.twitter.com/9DePsdlYO9
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) November 7, 2025

A dominant start to his fourth season in Utah, and a powerful way to kick off the year with a track record unseen since the NBA's third all-time leading scorer.

Lauri Markkanen Posting Historic Scoring Stretch for Jazz

Nov 3, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen (23) shoots the ball over Boston Celtics forward Josh Minott (8) during the first half at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images | Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images

Malone's record came during the Jazz's season where they would eventually head to their 1998 NBA Finals appearance, and a year that Utah's all-time leading scorer would land second on the league's MVP ladder to, of course, the one and only Michael Jordan.

But when turning the clock back to how Malone started that season, his streak for consecutive 20-point games does stand pretty tall––rattling off an impressive 15-game streak of 20 points or more on the night, ending at the start of December in a game against the New Jersey Nets. In that showing, he logged just 19.

In all, Malone finished that 1997-98 season with just five games under the 20-point mark. Unreal numbers for the Hall of Fame inductee, and make a challenging road ahead for Markkanen if he wants to have a similarly dominant season.

But, even if not of MVP-proportions for this season, Markkanen has made his presence felt in a big way.

3️⃣ ball, corner pocket 🎱 pic.twitter.com/xvIXli9CWK
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) November 6, 2025

Markkanen has begun his first eight games of the season averaging 30.4 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 2.0 assists while shooting 46.6% from the field and 35.4% from three, en route to becoming the NBA's sixth-highest scorer through three weeks of action, and being a bright spot for a Jazz offense that currently ranks 23rd in the league for offensive rating (113.4).

Such a hot start from Markkanen effectively proves a couple of things— the first being that he's back to full health after a hobbled 2024-25 campaign that limited him to just 47 games on the year, while also proving that his statement EuroBasket run over the summer that led Finland to a historic semifinals run wasn't a fluke.

In fact, Markkanen might be showing the initial signs that he's gotten even better from how he took over in the EuroBasket tournament, similar to how the Jazz star came out after Finland's 2022 run that led to his Most Improved Player campaign.

Time will tell how long Markkanen's stellar production will hold up for the Jazz, but so far, the Finnisher has been a pleasant surprise in his initial sample size.

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