The Utah Jazz trading Walker Kessler was one of the NBA Offseason's most stunning moves (though the confirmation that he would not have stayed long-term took away a lot of the shock). Utah's choices were either to find a replacement or try to use a rotation of centers to replace him. They chose the latter, but for how long?
For now, because Utah doesn't have that much pressure on them to perform now (if any), they don't have to rush into getting a Kessler replacement. However, if it's clear getting one would vault them even closer to the title discussion, Robert Williams III would make a lot of sense to replace Kessler.
There has been no intel confirming that Williams is available, or that Utah would be interested if he is. However, one of The Ringer's Michael Pina's "bold" predictions is that the Jazz will trade for a center to replace Kessler, and the name he brought up specifically was Williams.
"In light of Jusuf Nurkic’s injury, I would like to see Robert Williams III in Utah. Reunite Timelord with the Ainge family and give the Jazz a defensive inside presence whose passing ability tracks nicely with how Will Hardy—who was an assistant coach in Boston when Rob was its starting center—likes to invert the floor. Everybody wins!"
Williams is injury-prone, but he has made NBA All-Defense before because of his rim protection. Better than that, he is an excellent rebounder. His availability problems limits his effectiveness. He'd be awesome for 20 to 22 minutes a game, which might be all that Utah would need if they acquire him.
Something Pina acknowledges is that to make this happen, Portland's season would have to start sideways, but everyone should keep in mind is that they have a lot of centers. It's very plausible that he could be squeezed out no matter how their season shakes out, which could pave the way for Utah to swoop in.
It gets even better though
Pina suggested in his article that the Jazz could dangle Nurkic and a couple of second-round picks to get their hands on Williams. Why would they even have to do that? They have Josh Green, who makes more than Williams and appears not to be in Utah's future, and they have the $15.2 million Kessler TPE to absorb Williams' deal (he makes $14 million this season).
There's a world where they could easily have Nurkic and Timelord anchor their center minutes together. What would be so wrong about that? It could be a fun yin and yang dynamic between the two of them.
Pina's outline makes a lot of sense, even if it contingent on Portland deciding to part ways with Timelord. And even if they set a high price for him, it's not like Utah couldn't meet it. Williams may not be on the same level as Kessler, but he is enough of a game-changer that the Jazz's season could go a lot differently if they get him.
Add us as a preferred source on Google