DJ & PK: Should The Utah Jazz Deal Walker Kessler?

DJ & PK: Should The Utah Jazz Deal Walker Kessler?

DJPK, it’s 975 the zone. Well, it’s rumor, speculation season. Few team, few teams, few businesses do drama and rumors and speculation as well as basketball. And I guess we can trace the roots back in, you know, 75 years ago in baseball, they called it the hot stove league and all the offseason rumors about trades flew around. So, we got a bunch of stuff out there about the NBA. Now PK and the one that involves the Utah Jazz that caught your ear. He soon could be Well, I guess he’s already the longest tenure Jazzman, right? Because that his trade got done before Markin’s trade.
Yeah.
By a few weeks.
Uh but Walker Kesler and what might be out there as far as interest around the league and interest with the Jazz. I think Kesler is one of these players that on his own, he’s not a superstar, or at least not yet. Maybe he can develop. That’d be awesome if he did. But you put him in a team that has a specific need for his skill set. And he could really, really help a team. There’s no question about it. Because his skill set is something that teams need. They need a shot blocker. They need a rim protector. They need a rebounder. Every team needs it, right? And that player doesn’t need to be necessarily a superstar, but you like Yaka Purle, I think, can do a lot of different things on his own. He’s probably not a first team allNBA or any of that stuff, but put him on a like I said yesterday, put him on the Warriors and wow, I think he would make that team a lot better. And so, I don’t want to see it sound like uh Liam Niss and Taken, but Walker Kesler has a certain set of skills, and if he gets to use them, he will kill you. So, I think I think that’s where it needs to start. Take the personality out briefly. I think uh this is a question for any of the 30 teams, obviously more so for the Jazz because he’s on the Jazz roster right now, but any of the 29 teams that might be thinking about acquiring him. How do you view the defensive minded pick and roll center? I mean, we just saw one of them with Rudy, right? What neither one of these guys did and what Dererick Favors didn’t do either was shoot threes. And it does seem like there are coaches GMs that are really dedicated to I’m going to have five three-point shooters on the floor and one or two of them need to be rim protectors. And this is where positionless basketball gets a lot more real, right? They may not be traditional. Giannis is not a traditional center, but he’s a rim protector. So, the the Bucks have wanted, you know, five three-point shooters out there. And so, they had Lopez. Now, obviously, he’s moved on to the Clippers here and they, you know, went over and took the Pacers apart. But, Kes, that’s that’s not Kesler. And and and to me, it doesn’t look like it’s going to be Kesler. I mean, I know he’s talked about it and I know guys older than him have added that. So, maybe maybe that’ll happen. And man, if they give up on him and it does happen, then they don’t look very good. So, they got to be able to figure that out. And they got more info on that than than we do. That seems to be a big How do they want to play? How does Austin want them to play? Does he like a defensive guy and four shooters or is he someone who demands five shooters? Because that that philosophical question seems to me like that’s the basis of what you decide. Okay. But if I’m good enough offensively with the other guys, he can help me in an area that he has expertise in.
Oh yeah. And they’re coaches who believe that, and we saw that with Quinn Snyder and Rudy. I mean, Quinn thought he could do it. I I don’t I don’t think that was spin in public. He loved Rudy. He loved what Rudy did at the defensive end, and he thought he the other four players and Rudy was really good in the pick and roll game. So, it’s, you know, but he didn’t need Rudy to be a three-point shooter to have a really good offense in his mind. Now, they never got to the conference final, but you can argue, hey, the Jazz didn’t get to the conference final with Stockton Malone right away either. You know, that that that took a good long while. Yeah. But the rumor out there that I saw is two first in a player for Kesler. If double A got two first and a player and that player is not some
I was gonna say just
who are the player and where are the picks? Well, two first. Well, yeah, but if they’re if they’re picked 20 and 25, I’m not that impressed. If they if they end up being lottery if they end up being lottery picks, I’m very impressed.
Right. But wide range. Yeah, but that the Minnesota pick wasn’t uh or was it Cleveland, which they I think they just used the Minnesota pick and it wasn’t lottery, but they moved up three spots and got a player that they really wanted.
So that gives you just because you get that doesn’t mean that’s exclusively what you get. Then you spin that and you move up. You got picks now. Now you now you got you got eight, nine picks in the next x amount of years. We’re already seeing that with Oklahoma City. That’s one of their big selling points. Well, sure, they’re going to have to pay guys, but they’ve also got these picks, so they can reload that way.
And I I don’t think you scoff at first round picks.
And I get a a a fifth place spot is better than on 20, at least on paper anyway. Uh but we already saw what they did. They moved up what, three spots this year to get someone out. We’ll see what Clayton ends up being. Hopefully, he’s a great player and fills a real big-time need. But they were, if they’re excited, at least they were excited about getting him. You don’t you don’t trade up for somebody that you’re not excited for. At the same time, I think they traded up for Trey Burke and that didn’t work. So, who’s to say, right? We’ll find out in the next three, four years. That’s the fun of it all is that these guys do without question know more than all of us. I whatever I know, Austin knows a thousand times more. I have no doubt in saying that, but even when you say that, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to be the right pick.
No. Well, there was I mean, it wasn’t that long ago that, you know, they were holding out for a first for Jordan Clarkson. They thought they could get it. It turned out they couldn’t. So, just because they think it doesn’t mean it’s right. And just because they pick a guy doesn’t mean he’s right. But I get your point that on the surface getting two picks, two first round picks and a player and that could be pretty intriguing, you know, and tell me who the player is, obviously.
Yeah.
But assuming that it’s a starting I mean, I would think they’d be looking for someone who they think within a year is a starting quality player under the age of 25.
Now, is it better than that? You know, I probably don’t want a guy older than that. Yeah, I understand. Nice and interesting. The only my biggest concern if they were to move Kesler
is he’s the one guy on the roster
or the only guy on the roster who gives you what he can give you. And you look at the rest of the roster, right? Right now, they’ve got options. You want wing players, tall wing players who are athletic. I can give you Bailey. I can give you Hrix. I can give you Williams. Now, I don’t know if those guys are going to pan out, but I’ve got options there to see. And just by dumb luck, one or two of those guys are going to pan out. They have to, right? And it’s the same thing at the guard line. They’ve got three, four guys. Well, if you get rid of Kesler, you have nobody at center who can give you what you’re looking at. Nerkage is older, so I don’t think he’s going to be there in three to four years.
He’s going to be there in two,
right?
We’ll see if he makes it through this one.
Right. So that’s what that’s the one thing that would concern me about moving Kesler is then you got to go out and get somebody like him and you already have him. Whereas if you traded uh Kante George, I got two, three other guys that I can give opportunities to. So at least I I have the possibility of filling those needs. You create a void if you get rid of Keser that you don’t have right now. But if the offer is so overwhelming, well then you got to take it. Well, goes back. We were talking about this with David Lockach, you know, probably couple months ago and I remember him saying, “Well, if you move Kesler, you have to go find another Kesler
because you got to have somebody like that and you don’t. I mean, Philip Powski is a big guy, but he just doesn’t move like that. He’s not that long. He’s just, you know, that’s just not happening. Not not way.” Right. So they got to go find somebody else. So that does seem like a setback. Now, conversely, they’re so far away that if you have one piece, you can move and you can get two or three pieces, you know, because otherwise it’s sitting here adding one guy at a time. And how long is it going to take? Yeah, but they haven’t been adding. I mean, they’ve been adding three at a time. If they hit on all three, you’re right. Nice.
Or not, but just dumb luck. They should hit on some of them. And and there’s other ways to add guys. You can find your, you know, Royce O’Neal undrafted or Joe Engles undrafted. You know, not everybody has to come in through the draft. There people playing basketball all over the world who can contribute in the NBA. So, there’s other places, but there aren’t a lot of places to find a seven-footer who’s as long and athletic and moves as well as Kesler does,
right?
And that catches everybody’s eye. And I know somebody who talked to Steve Kerr when they were here the first time and he saw him in person for the first time. obviously knew about him, but he’s like, “Well, he’s gonna be good is those guys just know.”
Yeah. But I do think philosophically, man, if you’re really if you really want five three-point shooters, and if that’s what you’ve got to do to be an elite team and to be a championship contender and to win a champion and you really believe in that, then you probably should be looking for that kind of trade for Walker because I don’t think he’s going to turn into
high three-point shooters. I mean, I think Milwaukee did when they when they won it,
right?
I mean, so if you’re trying to build that team, you’re not
you don’t need him.
You don’t need that.
And if you come to that conclusion, then my desire to trade him goes way down. If that’s what Austin didn’t have it,
OKC doesn’t have it. Well, you may think you have it and you don’t have it. Now, we get into the real get into the weeds a little more. I don’t know what you mean by that.
Well, you think you’ve got a three-point shooter and then you get to the finals and he shoots 25% from three. So, you didn’t have him when you need him. I mean, Turner really struggled. He’s not a three-point shooter. I don’t think so.
He shot He shot 39% from three and he was taken five a game this year. Five and a half actually.
So, I think they think they have him.
Do it when it matters.
Exactly. Exa. And that’s what I was just saying. You think you’ve got him, but then you’re in the finals and they just aren’t going in.
And then they didn’t want to pay him the money, so he left. Yep. They told us that they didn’t value him. I don’t need to tell you him. I don’t need to say it. They told us. Well, would they have valued him if they weren’t going into the luxury tax or are they just another one of these teams? And I think that’s really hampering the rebuild here. I think it’s hampered their plan the last three years is that owners are drawing absolute lines about depending on the club about luxury tax first apron and certainly the second apron like I’m not writing that check and so
hat run out of money here get a gofundme no I don’t I don’t think any of these owners are going to run out of money but nonetheless they don’t want to spend it
I don’t know I don’t know who the owners of the Pacers are so I have no idea all I know is this one that’s all I care about I couldn’t tell you that the owner of the Pacers could walk in the room right now and I’d have no clue. I don’t even know the person’s name. No idea. And I don’t want to know. The I’m worried about the Jazz, not the Pacers. Uh so that’s where I make my money. He’s talking about the Jazz. Uh, I I I don’t I don’t even think I don’t think that the the the rebuild has been hampered by the Jazz’s unwillingness to spend money.
No, I think it’s been hampered by other teams unwillingness to take on the salaries of Jazz players. I don’t think the thing that’s limited trading John Collins is his talent. I think the thing that’s limited trade in him is his salary and how it fits into other people’s uh budgets. Yeah, but that’s every team in the league. And that’s true. And I think and I think that’s why he’s still here. And I think that’s why Clarkson was here
certainly two years longer than he needed to be. You probably argue three. Yeah. And that’s why I mean they got rid of uh Mitchell and Goar. I just that’s that’s part of the deal. That that’s never going to end. I mean, that’s of course that’s the case. Uh, they were paying them too much money and they didn’t have the flexibility and they didn’t think they were good enough. I get it. So, that’s why we’re in this situation that we’re in. If they were making $10 million a year, it’d be another story.
Well, they’re about to decide whether they have to pay Kesler. So, if you’re going to move him,
well, they’re not deciding this summer. They’re gonna they’re not going to resign him. they’re going to let him go and be a restricted free agent and then they’ll So they’re as you would say kicking it down the road. So they’ve already made that decision. I can tell you that. We’re moving into Gordon Hayward territory people.
Mhm.
Yeah.
Same plan. Yeah. And then Gordon got all his got his feelings hurt because he thought he was a big- time player and big- time players aren’t treated like that. The only problem was you weren’t a big- time player. I mean, you’re a very good player. I’m not denigrating his talent by any stretch, but he thought he was all world uh because he lived put Butler on his back and got to the final four and yeah, okay, you’re very very you’re really good. Hayward was really good, but he wasn’t that type of player. So, the Jazz I thought they treated him fine. He got his money, but he got offended and then when it was time to leave, he left and he went chasing the biggest stars cuz he thought he was among the biggest stars. He wasn’t. And I think Kesler will have a little more common sense in this situation. I would think you’re right. I don’t think I don’t think Kesler Yeah. I think he’s probably wired a little different. I think he definitely think he views himself differently. Yeah. So, he’ll he’ll get his money. Kesler just needs to put his head down. He knows this. Put his head down and go to work, man. and do what you need to do and you’ll get that offer that’ll come. Yeah. Just keep doing what got him from where he was his first year to where he is now.
Yeah.
Just keep keep that arc. Although the Yeah. The arc. Yeah. Exactly. Because expectations go up. Yep.
You you don’t you don’t plateau at this age. something’s wrong.
And if that three if that if he does develop a three to any level, then moving him get that that gets a lot harder for me to swallow. Not that they care what I think or they care how I feel about the move, but I’d be like, well, what are you moving him for at I mean, at that point, he becomes I mean, what what what more do you want from him at that point?
Unless it’s just a killer deal. Yeah. Again, back to who the who the team is, what the picks are. You know, some teams unprotected picks are awfully tempting, especially if they’re in the next draft. So, you hear two firsts and and they’re not all created equal.
They only have one unavailable, nontradable, under any circumstance player, and that’s AJ Deansa. They don’t have MPK.
Oh, you just wait. You just wait. Yeah, now you’re talking. That’s what you did with Cooper Flag. How’d that work out? That was a long shot. That was a long shot, man. It was a one in 87 chance. They drafted where they’re supposed to. This is going forward. You don’t know where it’s going to be. And a kid who if Ace Bailey can finagle where he’s doesn’t want to go, you don’t think AJ Debonsa, this kid already loves Utah? My goodness gracious. He’s the grand marshal at the parade tomorrow, isn’t he? Or is that later on in the month? I forget.

With the Utah Jazz dealing Collin Sexton and buying out Jordan Clarkson, opening playing time for some younger players, should the Jazz also move on from Walker Kessler?