Walker Kessler's injury sets up summer of uncertainty for Jazz

The Utah Jazz never got close to an extension with Walker Kessler this summer. Now that Kessler is out for the season, they're looking at an uncertain future with their shot-blocking center.

Kessler will have surgery Thursday to repair a torn labrum in his shoulder, a procedure that will end his 2025-26 almost before it had begun. The 24-year-old center had been having an excellent season before the injury. Now, he'll become a restricted free agent next summer with only five games for interested teams to evaluate.

Walker Kessler has looked like the heir to Rudy Gobert 

Kessler was the No. 22 pick in 2022 out of Auburn, where he led the nation in blocks and was Defensive Player of the Year in the SEC. He was traded to the Jazz before his rookie season in the blockbuster that sent Rudy Gobert to the Minnesota Timberwolves. That year, Kessler finished fourth in the NBA in blocks per game and third in Rookie of the Year voting.

While Kessler's second season was a step back, perhaps due to a miserable experience at the 2023 FIFA World Cup where he was benched, he still blocked 154 shots in 64 games. Last season, Kessler was second in blocks per game, scored a career-high 11.1 points per game and averaged 12.2 rebounds, grabbing a league-leading 4.6 offensive boards per game.

While his offensive game is limited, Kessler has improved his passing, going from 0.9 assists per game two seasons ago to three per game this season. He's also become an efficient scorer, shooting 70.3 percent from the floor and matching last season's total of six three-pointers in his first four games.

The Jazz may have to pay big for Walker Kessler

One knock on Kessler is that he hasn't been incredibly healthy. He missed 24 games last season and is going to miss 77 this year. For a player who is going to get a multiyear contract offers worth over $100M, it's a risky proposition.

But as a restricted free agent, Kessler can get offers from other teams, which the Jazz have the right to match. While that gives the Jazz leverage over Kessler, the opportunity to sign a 25-year-old center who blocks shots as well as any NBA center not named Victor Wembanyama should be tempting to a lot of teams. The Los Angeles Lakers have regularly shown interest — and they could have $45M in salary-cap space when the contract of LeBron James expires and Austin Reaves opts out of his 2026-27 deal.

The Jazz have plenty of money to match any deal, but they may be hesitant to lock in on Kessler. He blocks a lot of shots and provides an imposing presence in the paint, but the Jazz had the league's worst defense in both of the last two seasons. They'd have preferred to see Kessler play a full season, especially alongside rookie Ace Bailey and the rest of Utah's young core, before making a big decision — or working out a trade.

Losing Kessler is going to make it much harder for the Jazz to have a decent defense this season. It's also going to make their summer decision-making much, much harder.