Walker Kessler spoke for the first time since his fourth season prematurely ended due to season-ending shoulder surgery. While talking about his road to recovery, Kessler revealed something that hadn't been known until now: his shoulder injury dated back to before he even entered the NBA.
Kessler revealed to reporters that he suffered this exact injury back when he was in college, thus meaning he played hurt for over three years before doing anything about it.
“I’ve had a posterior labrum tear in my left shoulder since Auburn,” Kessler said, per The Deseret News' Sarah Todd. “Just kind of tried to play through it, strengthen it. But during this year ... the doctor explained it as the more it subluxes, the more just all those tendons get stretched out.
“In regards to the strengthening you can do, especially with the posterior, there’s no amount of strength that will keep it from slipping out again and again. So he told me, ‘You’ve got to have a surgery. You’ve already subluxed it so many times.’”
If anything, this reflects well on Kessler's character. Despite dealing with this nagging injury for years, he still was willing to put himself out there on the floor. He didn't necessarily have to, as the Jazz were rebuilding with or without him, but still wanted to give it his all.
It sucks that he won't play for the rest of the season, but at least he's making the smart move not endangering his career. But with him out, and in light of this news, it does beg an interesting question.
Could this impact extension talks with Kessler?
Kessler being out is really unfortunate and not just because of the injury itself. Plenty of centers should get a market, and because Kessler is coming off a season-ending surgery that kept him for almost the entire season, that may scare off any interested suitors if his being a restricted free agent won't be bad enough.
However, playing through injury not only demonstrates how perseverant Kessler is, but it also hints that perhaps at full health, there could be another gear to his game. He was starting to show that in the few games he played before he got sidelined. If Utah had an unhealthy Kessler for the first four years of his Utah tenute, it is exciting to think about what he could look like with a clean bill of health.
At the same time, Danny Ainge has never been one to let sentiment affect his decisions. We must remember that Kessler was annoyed that the Jazz did not go out of their way to extend him this offseason (even if that was the most team-friendly decision).
Kessler missing most of the season is likely to factor into his next deal, but now, he may have just regained some of his leverage by revealing he'd been hurt for years. Will he stay as a Jazzman? It'll be a while before we find out.