Insider reveals Jazz's asking price for Walker Kessler: Are they selling too low?

It's already public record that the Utah Jazz have made Walker Kessler available in trade talks. However, it hadn't been clear what exactly the Jazz wanted in return for Kessler. That is until SNY's Ian Begley revealed the full details of what they are asking for teams in exchange for the young rim protector.

"The Knicks had been in touch with Utah, had had some interest in Walker Kessler, the big man, as a potential solution for, at the backup five," Begley said via Knicks Videos account. "But teams in touch with Utah say the Jazz are looking for at least a first-round pick in return for Kessler in these conversations that have gone on earlier in the offseason."

It's easy to pinpoint the Knicks' interest in Kessler. They lost fan favorite Isaiah Hartenstein, who found his footing in New York that paved the way for him to get a nice bag worth $87 million over the next three years in Oklahoma City. Kessler could be another diamond in the rough for them, but only if they give the Jazz what they want.

On the other hand, is Kessler's value truly that low that it would only take a first-rounder from a team widely expected to be in the contender conversation to get a deal done? Kessler may not have built on his impressive rookie campaign, but the Jazz can't be that desperate to get rid of him for what would likely be a late first-rounder.

An almost 23-year-old proven rim protector who will enter the third year of his rookie contract on a team that has minimal expectations and maximum cap space doesn't seem like the ideal candidate to get traded. But maybe there's more to this story than meets the eye.

The Jazz may think Walker Kessler simply doesn't fit

There had been rumblings from ESPN's Spence Checketts of some internal strife between Kessler and those within the Jazz organization back on April 17. He also hinted that there may have been a conflict between Kessler and head coach Will Hardy, though he didn't delve into specifics.

Factoring that with all the trade rumors surrounding Kessler, and it sounds like the Jazz may be trying to get rid of someone who could be a problem going forward. Despite Kessler's youth, there is the possibility that he could be a distraction weighing down the Jazz, and his demons may not make him worth the trouble.

Even though Kessler is still pretty fresh-faced to the NBA, even players at his age don't like playing for a team who won't have much success in the immediate future. Despite the rumors, don't count on a Kessler trade anytime soon. He and the Jazz have plenty of time to figure out what their best move is from here.

Even if this is headed for a split, it's hard to believe all it would take to end this union is first-rounder from a Knicks team looking to add help in their frontcourt for cheap.