The point of the 2023-2024 season has changed as things have played out. The idea was that it'd be a season of competition, but after a trade deadline that saw Simone Fontecchio, Kelly Olynyk and Ochai Agbaji get traded, the focus seems to be on securing the Jazz's own 2024 first-round draft pick. The team is hoping, at least we believe them to be, to land their own pick, giving them three draft picks in the 2024 NBA Draft.
Due to this, guys who could help the team win were either dealt or moved to the bench in favor of seeing what the rookies and young players could do going forward. Taylor Hendrick got the first start of his career this past week, and Brice Sensabaugh is finally getting minutes, finally following in the footsteps of fellow rookie Keyonte George.
Yet, Walker Kessler is still getting moved around randomly. Utah Jazz head coach Will Hardy keeps shuffling him in and out of the lineup, potentially hindering his evaluation. With the rest of the season becoming about finding out about the team's young players, it seems odd that Kessler, and not guys like John Collins are being benched.
Well, with the Jazz facing the San Antonio Spurs and their star player Victor Wembanyama, it may be time to prioritize Kessler. Collins and Hendricks are going to get eaten alive by Wembanyama, and if the goal of the remaining games is to test the younger players, then the Jazz need to put Kessler out there every minute that Wembanyama is.
Let's find out what Kessler can do against a peer. Let's see if he's capable of being the player we hope he can be, and let's see if he can't give the Spurs rookie a real challenge tonight. Otherwise, what are we even doing?