“You play a lot of games in this league so it’s tough to be consistent,” said Lauri Markkanen, during an interview for the Chicago-Sun  Times back in 2019. Similarly to several other NBA stars, the Utah Jazz player’s previous quote proved true for himself as well, during the ongoing season. After all, from late October onwards, Markkanen had sustained four different ailments, which limited his availability on the court. Over the last 3 weeks, however, those injury woes seemed to have been behind the 27-year-old, as his name was absent amidst a stacked injury report. But, unfortunately, that consistent streak seems to have come to an end once again…

Just hours before the Utah Jazz-Brooklyn Nets matchup, Lauri Markkanen was announced ‘OUT’ from the game. The update comes as he has been diagnosed with lower back spasms, causing him to miss the second leg of the Jazz’s back-to-back set. However, as highlighted by CBS Sports, the injury is not serious enough to cause a long-term absence. The Finnish star may end up returning for Wednesday’s matchup against the Charlotte Hornets.

The 27-year-old small forward has been dealing with a recurring bout of lower back spasms since late October. Sustaining the injury during a matchup against the Sacramento Kings, Lauri Markkanen left the court after 17 minutes. He did not return for the second half and missed the next couple of games. This was unfortunate for the Utah Jazz squad.

After all, within the initial set of games this season, Markkanen averaged a team-high 18.0 points, along with 7.3 rebounds. Even now, having averaged 20.1 points, the small forward is the highest average scorer, amongst his teammates, this season.

The Jazz neither had an advantage, nor a disadvantage, due to Markkanen’s absence. After all, they’ve managed to maintain a 3-3 win record in his absence. However, things may be different when the squad goes up against the Brooklyn Nets.

With Lauri Markkanen now sidelined, Collin Sexton will be the only Jazz starter, playing in the matchup. Point guard Keyonte George is set to miss his 5th consecutive as he recovers from his heel injury. Power Forward John Collins will also miss his 5th consecutive game because of his left hip injury. After posting 16 points, 13 rebounds, and 2 blocks against the Phoenix Suns, Walker Kessler will miss the Nets game due to ‘rest’. Therefore, it will be up to the Jazz management to make the appropriate changes for the game.

How can the Utah Jazz go forward without Lauri Markkanen?

Even if Lauri Markkanen returns for the next game, his availability status cannot be taken for granted. Therefore, for the matchup against the Brooklyn Nets and after the same, Cody Williams, Brice Sensabaugh, and Kyle Filipowski can see an increase in their playing time. Johnny Juzang, the secondary small forward for the Utah Jazz, will, unfortunately, be ‘OUT’ for a 3rd consecutive game. He continues to recover from his right hand fracture.

Out of the 22 games that he has played this season, Cody Williams has started in only 8 games. With a playing time of at least 20 minutes per game, he has averaged 4 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 1.2 assists. The player isn’t that efficient on the shooting front too. He possesses a 32.3% field goal percentage, 26.5% three-pointers, and 66.7% free throw percentage.

Meanwhile, Brice Sensabaugh has averaged 9.4 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 1.3 assists throughout 28 games. As for Kyle Filipowski, he has averaged 5.8 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.8 assists throughout 27 games.

Therefore, neither of the players is individually enough to cover for Lauri Markkanen in his untimely absence. However, the Utah Jazz squad has no real choice but to depend on these guys to assist in the offensive effort. Just how efficient they will turn out to be is something that’ll be answered anyway in the due course. Till then, why don’t you drop your prediction?