The Finnish basketball federation announced today the presence of Markkanen on those two games which are scheduled on the 29th of June and the 2nd of July. “It’s nice to wear again the Finland jersey in front of our home fans. We have created memories for a lifetime during the Eurobasket games which were played in Finland and now it’s time to create some more memories”, said Markkanen.
Finland Rumors
Lauri Markkanen: Always an honor to play for my country 🇫🇮 #EuroBasket2017 didn’t end the way we wanted but I’m proud of everyone who was part of the journey pic.twitter.com/W64CrqwyV2
Comparisons between Lauri Markkanen and Dirk Nowitzki might seem way premature but are inevitable, considering the Finnish big guy’s feats in the EuroBasket tournament. And, of course, Henrik Dettman, who also coached Nowitzki back in his early days with the German NT, from 1997 to 2003, is quite possibly the ideal person to talk about the resemblance between the two players.
“I don’t need to say how special is. You all see it when he plays. There’s something I’ve been saying for some time: It’s unfair to compare human beings with each other. And we are talking about players from different areas. But there are many similar things in the game that Dirk and Lauri play,” Dettman said during the post-game press conference.
Henrik Dettman: “The only thing we don’t know is if Lauri has the same work ethic that Dirk has with the game. If Lauri has the same work ethic, and is healthy, he’ll definitely reach the same level that Dirk has. He has skills, speed, understanding for the game. It’s also natural.The new generation has to be better than the one of the past.”
