Mikael Jantunen

Mikael Olli Axel Jantunen (born 20 April 2000) is a Finnish professional basketball player for Paris Basketball of the LNB Pro A and the EuroLeague, and for the Finland national team. He played college basketball for the Utah Utes.

Early life and career
Jantunen grew up in Vuosaari, Helsinki and initially played football before switching to basketball at the age of 11. He started basketball in a youth team of a local club Wartti Basket. Jantunen competed for HBA-Märsky in Finnish second-tier Koripallon I-divisioona from 2016 to 2019, while attending the Helsinki Basketball Academy. In October 2018, Jantunen committed to Utah over offers from Loyola Marymount, Oregon State, Georgia Tech, and Stanford.

College career
Jantunen started three games as a freshman and averaged 6.7 points and 4.9 rebounds per game. He suffered a fractured nose in December 2020, forcing him to wear a protective mask. On 9 January 2021, Jantunen scored a career-high 20 points in a 79–73 loss to Oregon. As a sophomore, Jantunen averaged 8.9 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game. Following the season, he opted to turn professional.

Oostende (2021–2022)
On 23 July 2021, Jantunen signed with Filou Oostende of the BNXT League and the Basketball Champions League. At the end of the season, he won the BNXT League Sixth Man of the Year award, as well as the Belgian championship with Oostende.

Treviso (2022–2023)
On 14 June 2022, Jantunen was announced by Italian club Treviso Basket of the Lega Basket Serie A (LBA) on a two-year deal. After one season with Treviso, Jantunen terminated his contract with the club. During the season, he had played 29 games in the Italian league, scoring 8.2 points and grabbing 4.9 rebounds in 23.6 minutes per game.

Golden State Warriors (2023)
On 28 June 2023, Jantunen was named in the Golden State Warriors squad for the 2023 NBA Summer League. He averaged 7.8 points and 3.3 rebounds in 18.0 min playing time in four games.

Paris Basketball (2023–present)
On 26 July 2023, he signed a two-year deal with Paris Basketball of the LNB Pro A and the EuroCup. Jantunen and Paris became the LNB Pro A Leaders Cup champions in February 2024, by defeating Nanterre 90–85 in the final. In April 2024, Jantunen and Paris defeated French league rivals JL Bourge-en-Bresse in the 2024 EuroCup Finals by 2–0 and were crowned the EuroCup champions, thus earning a spot to the EuroLeague next season. After placing 2nd in the regular season of the French League, Jantunen and Paris advanced to the 2024 Playoff Finals, where they were eventually defeated by AS Monaco 3–1 and finished as the season's runners-up.

National team career
Jantunen played with Finland U16 at the 2016 FIBA U16 European Championship tournament. He was named in the Finland U17 roster at the 2016 FIBA U17 World Cup in Zaragoza, Spain, where he averaged 5.6 points and 6.1 rebounds in seven games. Jantunen also represented Finland at the 2018 FIBA U18 European Championship. He averaged 17 points, 10 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game, shooting 72.3 percent from the field.

Jantunen played several games for the Finnish senior national team in the FIBA EuroBasket 2022 Qualifier round. He was forced to miss time with Utah in February 2021 to play in the matches.

Jantunen was part of the Finland squad in the EuroBasket 2022 and the 2023 FIBA World Cup final tournaments. He also played in the 2024 FIBA Olympic qualifying tournament in Valencia, Spain, being named in the tournament's All-Star Five with 17.7 points, 7.3 rebounds and 3 assists per game over three matches against Bahamas, Poland and Spain.

EuroCup

 * style="text-align:left;background:#AFE6BA;"| 2023–24†
 * style="text-align:left;"| Paris Basketball
 * 23 || 14 || 21.0 || .545 || .415 || .844 || 4.0 || 1.2 || 1.1 || .2 || 7.9 || 11.1
 * 23 || 14 || 21.0 || .545 || .415 || .844 || 4.0 || 1.2 || 1.1 || .2 || 7.9 || 11.1