Lauri Markkanen is college basketball’s latest unicorn

Just over nine minutes into the Arizona Wildcats’ season opener against the Michigan State Spartans, Lauri Markkanen made the first shot of his college basketball career. The jumper — a catch-and-shoot 3 from the wing shortly after he released from setting a ball screen — was merely a sign of things to come for the 7-foot tall 19-year old.

23 games into the season, Markkanen leads the Wildcats in scoring at 16.4 points per contest. His emergence as one of the most efficient scorers in the sport has been crucial for an Arizona team currently sitting alone and undefeated atop the Pac-12 standings ahead of Saturday’s clash with the Oregon Ducks in Eugene.

* * * * *

Markkanen’s development didn’t come by chance. His father, Pekka, played one season of college basketball at the University of Kansas before returning to Finland to start his own professional career. His time on the court taught him that big men need to be able to do more than just play with their backs to the basket.

“If you play under the basket your whole career when you handle the ball, it’s going to be extremely difficult,” he told Bleacher Report for a feature written on his son in December. In response, Pekka made sure that his son was able to develop the full offensive repertoire.

Markkanen’s offensive attack is molded around his outside shooting. This season, the 19-year old has made 50.0 percent of his 110 3-point attempts. Even more important, though, is his ability to knock them down in a variety of ways. Markkanen is averaging 1.45 points per possession (95th percentile) on catch-and-shoot jumpers this season, per Synergy Sports. He frequently scores from pick-and-pop actions with one of Arizona’s guards, but is also capable of running his defender off of screens and knocking down jumpers in transition:

The Arizona freshman’s training is on full display in these actions as he moves fluidly and releases quickly with excellent form. Add in his height and it’s not hard to understand why Markkanen is shooting just about as well (1.43 points per possession) on defended shots as he is on open ones (1.50 points per possession).

Catch-and-shoot jumpers aren’t the only way Markkanen adds value — he’s scoring 1.00 points per possession (85th percentile) on jump shots off the dribble, per Synergy Sports, and is very capable attacking close outs in a straight line — but they are the most important as they help open up the rest of his offense and space the floor for Arizona’s guards to attack the paint.

* * * * *

In basketball parlance, the term “unicorn” is used to describe a player who has no peer because they possess some attribute, or combination of attributes, that sets them apart from everyone else. The college game has seen its fair share in recent memory.

Joel Embiid sticks out, for example. He offered a rare combination of inexperience, size and innate talent that put him on the path to be the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft prior to a series of injuries in 2014. Anthony Davis, Karl-Anthony Towns and Ben Simmons could also all stake a claim to the title for various reasons.

Lauri Markkanen is the latest college basketball player deserving of the unicorn moniker. Unlike those who came before him, the Finland native won’t find himself in the conversation to be the NBA Draft’s no. 1 pick — his defense is simply too poor — but his special combination of youth, size and shooting ability is something college basketball has never seen before.

Next: Who's college basketball's best Justin Jackson?

According to the Sports Reference database, which dates back to the 1992-93 season, Markkanen is the only 7-footer to average more than four 3-point attempts per game and post a true shooting percentage better than 65.0. Lots of big men have added range to their jumpers as their careers have progressed, although nearly all of them waited until they were several years into the NBA. For Markkanen to be this accurate at a high volume at just 19-years old is what makes him so special.