It's been a while since Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler was in any trade rumors. Last time anyone mentioned it, it sounded like Utah intends to keep him. However, we've seen shocking trades before, so anything goes. One proposed trade involving Kessler would send him to a team that needs him, but it would also be the Jazz selling low on him after a promising third season.
Bleacher Report's Zach Buckley proposed a trade between the Jazz and Indiana Pacers, where Indiana would win big, but the Jazz would certainly baffle their fans if they agreed to it. The trade is as followed.
Jazz receive: Jarace Walker and a 2026 first-round pick (top four-protected)
Pacers receive: Kessler
Buckley explained why the Jazz would make a move like this.
"This feels like the right middle ground. Indiana would solidify its center spot with Kessler, while Utah would gain a recent lottery pick in Walker and a lightly protected first-round pick from a team that will spend the season without its franchise face.
"With the Jazz overhauling their young core and clearly not worrying about winning any time soon, they could be more patient with Walker and give him the developmental reps he's struggled to find in Indiana," Buckley wrote.
The Pacers desperately need a center after losing Myles Turner to the Milwaukee Bucks in what was one of the most surprising twists in NBA Free Agency this summer. On paper, Kessler makes a lot of sense for them to fill that void.
There would be some temptation for Utah to get a potentially golden pick when the chance presents itself, but for someone like Kessler, who may be offensively limited and not exactly young but is nonetheless one of the league's best rim protectors and rebounders, it simply seems too drastic to cut ties with him so early.
Forget trading him to the Pacers. Trading Kessler for draft assets, no matter where Utah would send him, would require a massive Nico Harrison-like explanation.
The Jazz could dangle another center to the Pacers
Just because the Jazz likely wouldn't dangle Kessler doesn't mean they couldn't agree to a deal with the Pacers. As everyone should know by now, their most expendable big man on the roster is Jusuf Nurkic, who they bafflingly acquired for Collin Sexton and evidently does not have a long-term future in Utah.
Though it would take some moving parts, Nurkic would be a good stopgap center for Indiana while they look for Turner's replacement with Tyrese Haliburton recovering from his Achilles tear. The Pacers would like to be good, and while Kessler would definitely help them with that, if they really want to talk legitimate business with the Jazz, Nurkic might be the best they can hope for.
Grade: D