Dec 26, 2024; Portland, Oregon, USA; Utah Jazz power forward Lauri Markkanen (23) stands for the National Anthem before the game against the Portland Trail Blazers at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-Imagn Images Soobum Im-Imagn Images

Utah Jazz’s Lauri Markkanen a 'Lock' to Advance in EuroBasket

Originally posted on Utah Jazz on SI | By Jared Koch | Last updated Aug 25, 2025 1:00 PM ET

This week officially marks the beginning of this year's EuroBasket tournament after a few weeks of preparation play, kicking off the group stage with each country playing in five games to sort out the Round of 16.

And for Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen, he'll be looking to continue the elite level he's been playing at since joining Finland this summer. The Jazz star already has two 40-plus-point outings to his name within the four contests he's appeared in, leading Finland to an undefeated 4-0 record, albeit in exhibition play.

It's about as strong a start as one could expect from Markkanen leading up to the real action later this week, and for The Athletic's Zach Harper, Markkanen's recent track record puts him on track to not just be dominant in group play, but possibly allows Finland to be a "lock" to advance to the Round of 16.

"Let’s see what Markkanen can do. We talked about Şengün earlier as having the potential to dominate similarly to Luis Scola. Well, Markkanen is probably the better candidate for that. He’s been on a heater in these friendly games, and we know he can light up just about anybody. He doesn’t have a lot of help to get him deeper than the Round of 16, but getting out of the group should be a lock."

Markkanen and Finland will be placed in Group B– a collection that includes Germany, Lithuania, Montenegro, Great Britain, and Sweden; a group that's certainly able to be capitalized upon, especially with Markkanen's recent surge to be among the best players on the floor in the entire tournament.

The biggest challenge of that bunch for Markkanen will undoubtedly be the matchup against Germany, the third-ranked FIBA team and a squad with considerable current NBA talent in Franz Wagner, Dennis Schroder, and Tristan Da Silva, along with other former league representation in Daniel Theis and Isaac Bonga.

Though, with Lithuania's only NBA representation being Jonas Valanciunas, and Montenegro's being Nikola Vucevic, there's certainly a route for Finland to make the strides necessary to being among the top 16 advancing deeper into the tourney. If Markkanen can continue the hot hand into the higher stakes action, Finland might just be one of the few locks to be had in the looming group stage.