Walker Kessler experiment could unlock Jazz's offense

Walker Kessler has checked off every box for the Utah Jazz this season. Returning to form following a disappointing sophomore year? Check. Re-establishing himself as one of the best rim protectors in the game? Child's play. Evolving well enough on offense to play in crunchtime? Doneso.

Anyone who comes away from the season disappointed with Kessler's performance this season needs to re-evaluate their expectations. He's been awesome, and it's been hard to find any reason to be discouraged with how he's played.

Kessler is now, without a doubt, an essential part of the Jazz's future. Expecting him to be an All-Star with the skillset he has now is maybe a little too optimistic, but Kessler can definitely be as impactful as a star.

But what if he could add to his skillset? Would that vault him to future star status? Or possible All-NBA? And more importantly, what possibilities would that open up for the Jazz?

In recent days and with nothing left to lose because of the Jazz's elimination from playoff contention, Kessler has tried his hand at three-point shooting, and the early results are not great

However, it's a fun experiment that the Jazz won't suffer at all from this season. Per The Salt Lake Tribune's Andy Larsen, Head Coach Will Hardy is allowing Kessler to let it fly from deep.

“It’s fun for him, because he works on it all the time,“ Hardy told Larsen. Kessler shouted out his coach for letting himself do so because he believes he can add it to his arsenal.

“I’m very, very appreciative of him to give me the opportunity to work on it. And I know, and I believe in myself to know that I can do that,” Kessler told Larsen. “I need to get back in the rhythm of how to do it, because it’s been a long time since I’ve really done it in volume.”

Kessler already covers so much ground with his shotblocking and offensive rebounding. Adding a three-point shot to his repertoire would make him quite the glue player for Utah to the point where it could make the Jazz's offense so much more dynamic.

Utah already benefits plenty from having three big men who can space the floor - Lauri Markkanen, John Collins, and Kyle Filipowski - but having a fourth one could allow them to run more five out offense.

That kind of spacing from a frontcourt would make the Jazz very hard to stop if and when they form their next playoff team. In Kessler's case, it would make him one of the most multi-faceted big men in the NBA.

However, this is thinking ahead and all hypothetical.

There should be no pressure on Kessler to be a floor-spacer

Again, Kessler's already figured out how to make himself useful on offense even if what he's good at doesn't include shooting threes. There shouldn't be any pressure for him to add floor spacing to his arsenal on a team that has multiple big men who can do exactly that.

It would be awesome to see him become a threat from deep, but even if he improves in that regard, opponents will be more than happy to let Kessler beat them that way. Opponents will be much more scared of Kessler on the offensive boards than if he's behind the three-point line.

If this doesn't go anywhere, it's not like it's that unfortunate. It would just mean Kessler will go back to his bread and butter offensively. While fans would be more than happy to see the third-year Jazzman become a three-point sniper, no one should be upset if his offensive calling card is down low long-term.