Jazz Forward Markkanen Out 2 Weeks with Hip Injury

Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen will be sidelined for at least two weeks after an MRI revealed a symptomatic hip impingement with associated inflammation and a bone bruise in his right hip, according to league sources. The 28-year-old star sustained the injury during practice on Wednesday, February 25, 2026, and also twisted his right ankle in the session, though imaging on that came back clean. The team plans to reevaluate him around mid-March, with about a month remaining in the regular season.

Markkanen, a former All-Star, has been the focal point of the Jazz's offense this season, delivering a career-best scoring average of 26.7 points per game alongside 6.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 42 appearances, all starts. He has shot efficiently at 47.7 percent from the field and 35.5 percent from three-point range, shifting toward more interior scoring after a dip to 19 points per game last season. His absence adds to a mounting injury crisis for Utah, which entered Thursday's game against the New Orleans Pelicans with an 18-40 record, placing 13th in the Western Conference.

The injury occurred during an awkward landing as Markkanen drove toward the basket, head coach Will Hardy...