Over the last 10 years of Arizona Basketball, there has been plenty of big men under Sean Miller, Lauri Markkanen ranks as one of the best.
The Finnisher. To those fans who have at least been following Arizona Basketball and NBA basketball within the last three years know who I’m referencing. The one and only Lauri Markkanen. A native to Finland. Markkanen played just one season at Arizona but finished his career as one of the best big men to have played under Sean Miller.
Listed as a 7 foot and 230 pounds forward in college, he had the versatility, size, and strength to play the three, four and even the five-position if needed. Because of the makeup of the roster, he mainly played the power forward position along Dusan Ristic who played center.
His style of game was mainly focused around taking three-pointers, but when the opportunity presented itself he found a way to pound it inside for the finish or stepped back and hit the jumper. Hence the name “The Finnisher.”
The one area of his game that he did struggle with at times was making shots off the dribble. That being said though, he was able to use his body frame to find a way to get it to the rim. Markkanen was mainly effective as a spot-up shooter.
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Whether it was in the corner or at the top of the arc, he had and still does have one of the sweetest looking motions in the game today. It was a pure thing of beauty. It was obvious he had put in work in perfecting his shot.
In 37 games played and started at Arizona, Markkanen averaged 15.6 points and 7.2 rebounds per game. He shot 49.2 % from the field and 42.3% from three (fourth on the team that year). He was also a solid free-throw shooter at 83.5%.
Over the 10 years that Miller has been at Arizona he has coached some very talented big man. From Kaleb Tarczewski to Ristic and even Deandre Ayton just to name a few, Markkanen is right up there as one of the best.
His stats, records, and accolades while at Arizona speak for themselves. The immediate impact he had in his short time under Miller was the greatest asset he brought to this program.
Recently Markkanen came back to visit Arizona Basketball with his family:
https://twitter.com/APlayersProgram/status/1168218859431587840?s=20
Unfortunately, the Wildcat fan base only got to see him play one year before he decided to go to the NBA. He currently entering into his third season with the Chicago Bulls and has become one of their key franchise players.
There will only ever be one Finnisher and that is Lauri Markkanen. He will go down as one the best big man not just under Miller, but among the best all-time 7 footers, to have played at Arizona. As always, Bear Down Arizona!