Three years into his NBA career, Walker Kessler has already proven he's among the NBA's very best at two vital NBA skills: protecting the rim and rebounding the ball. The Utah Jazz center flashed his playmaking abilities during his lone preseason performance, and if the Jazz's experiment of turning him into a three-point shooter works, Kessler may become a star.
The Jazz tried to see if Kessler could be developed into a floor space towards the end of last season. It was not getting them good results, but that didn't stop them from trying, and it apparently hasn't stopped them from trying again coming into this season.
Kessler commented on the possibility of potentially becoming more of a floor spacer this season. Not only is he for it, but he explained why it's important for him to add it to his arsenal.
“I think it’s vastly important,” he told Deseret News' Sarah Todd. “The more that I look around the league — and not that I’m old or anything — going into year four, in order to stay in this league and to be successful, you have to grow your game, every year."
This doesn't necessarily mean Kessler will become a three-point threat, but if this experiment works out, it's hard not to look at that kind of progress and think Kessler could be an All-Star in the near future.
Players who can do a bit of everything, even if they're not necessarily scoring at high rates, get All-Star buzz, although that typically happens if his team is winning. Take Draymond Green. He was never a go-to scorer in Golden State, but many recognize him as a key ingredient to their extended dominance because of how much ground he covered on both sides of the floor.
Ironically, he was once a three-point threat, but those days are very much in the past. Still, he's a fantastic facilitator and an all-time defender whose presence has kept the Warriors relevant for over a decade. Even if his hubris has screwed them out of more titles more than once.
Could Kessler be Utah's Draymond when they start trying to win? Well, obviously he's a different archetype, but he could make a similar impact as Green. if he does, he could make multiple All-Star teams like Green did. In fact, if everything goes according to plan, maybe an All-NBA team isn't out of the question.
If this experiment fails, it's not the end of the world
There's no telling how long the Jazz will try to turn Kessler into a floor-spacer. He hit the one three-pointer he attempted during his lone preseason performance, which is a good sign, but obviously far from conclusive.
If it's a sign of what's to come, that's fantastic to see Kessler add that to his game. However, there's always the chance that this won't work out, and if that's the case, it's not like it's an indictment on Kessler as a player. He still is an excellent player all things considered with or without a three-point shot.
Plus, the Jazz have multiple big men who can space the floor who could be on the team for the foreseeable future, like Lauri Markkanen and Kyle Filipowski. Adding Kessler to that group of floor-spacing bigs would be exciting, but no one is going to be heartbroken if he doesn't get there.
Lastly, if Kessler adds this, it's not like the Jazz would demand he be on their level. If the fourth-year center eclipses a league average of 36%, that's a home run, and if he never reaches it, Utah will be fine long-term.