Walker Kessler

Walker Kessler

22-Year-Old CenterC
Utah Jazz  NBA  
Utah Jazz
GTD
Injury Nose
Est. Return 7/1/2024
2023 Fantasy Outlook
Kessler started his rookie season on the bench, logging fewer than 18 minutes per night for the first two months. During that time, he was able to carve out a roster spot in many fantasy leagues, a move that was to prove fruitful as the season progressed. By the end of the season, he had firmly established himself as the starting center in Utah, putting up top-20 value over the final two months. He ended as a fifth-round player, putting up healthy averages of 9.2 points, 8.4 rebounds and 2.3 blocks in just 23.0 minutes per game, shooting 72.0 percent from the field. Looking ahead to his sophomore season, Kessler will undoubtedly open as the starting center on a team potentially looking to push back into the playoffs. While direct translations are when projecting value, it's safe to assume he will be a high-priority target this season, likely in the fourth round. Managers must be aware that his value is heavily tied to just three categories. Of the three, blocks are by far his most important and influential category. Over the final two months of last season, he was blocking 3.2 shots per game, logging 28.6 minutes per contest. For anyone who misses out on an elite center earlier in drafts, he presents as a perfect secondary option who could potentially lead the league in blocks in just his second season. Read Past Outlooks
RANKS
Current Season
From Preseason
#69
ADP
$Signed a two-year, $5.53 million contract with the Jazz in July of 2022. Jazz exercised $2.97 million team option for 2024-25 in October of 2023. Contract includes $4.88 million team option for 2025-26.
Personal Bio/PreCareer Summary

Walker Kessler was born in Atlanta, Georgia on July 26, 2001. In high school, he played for Woodward Academy in College Park, Georgia and averaged 17.8 points, 9.3 rebounds and 5.2 blocks per game during his senior season. He also led his high school squad to the Class 4A state title and was later named The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Player of the Year, Mr. Georgia Basketball and Georgia Gatorade Player of the Year. Kessler was also rewarded with a selection to the McDonald's All-American Game. As a five-star recruit, Kessler committed to play college basketball for coach Roy Williams and the North Carolina Tar Heels. On March 10, 2021, the seven-foot center posted 16 points, 12 rebounds and eight blocks during a 101-59 win over Notre Dame in the second round of the ACC Tournament. However, Kessler decided to transfer after his freshman season with the Tar Heels and chose Auburn over Gonzaga. On Dec. 29, 2021, Kessler recorded a triple-double with 16 points, 11 blocks and 10 rebounds against LSU. At the conclusion of the 2021-22 season, Kessler was named the SEC Defensive Player of the Year, a member of the All-SEC First Team and a Third Team All American. Regarded as one of the best shot blockers in his class, Kessler declared for the 2022 NBA Draft and chose to forgo his remaining college eligibility. Kessler was drafted by the Grizzlies with the 22nd overall pick.

Expected to play in Summer League
CUtah Jazz
Nose
April 16, 2024
The Jazz plan to have Kessler (nose) participate in the 2024 NBA Summer League, Tony Jones of The Athletic reports.
ANALYSIS
After a nice rookie season in 2022-23 in which Kessler started his final 34 appearances, he was selected in the early-to-mid rounds of most fantasy leagues this season. Managers who did so were disappointed. The center's points (8.1) and rebounds (7.5) per game decreased, as did his field-goal percentage (65.4). He also started just 22 games and crossed the 30-minute threshold only eight times. While the Jazz also had interest in developing other bigs like John Collins and Taylor Hendricks, plus giving minutes to Kelly Olynyk before trading him to Toronto, Kessler's role gave the impression that he wasn't impressing coach Will Hardy. The organization seems to believe it would be best for Kessler to get more development minutes this summer.
Read More News
Per Game
Total
Per 36
NBA Per Game Stats
Loading Per Game Stats...
NBA Total Stats
Loading Total Stats...
NBA Per 36 Stats
Loading Per 36 Stats...
2023
2022
2023 NBA Game Log
Calculate Stats Over Time
Click on any two dates.
Scoring
NBA
FanDuel
DraftKings
Yahoo
Sorare
Fanball
Loading Game Log...
2022 NBA Game Log
Calculate Stats Over Time
Click on any two dates.
Scoring
NBA
FanDuel
DraftKings
Yahoo
Sorare
Fanball
Loading Game Log...
Schedule
By Month
Starting/Off Bench
Days Rest
Vs Opp
By Result
2023 NBA Per Game Split Stats
Loading Split Stats...
2023 NBA Per Game Split Stats - By Month
Loading Split Stats...
2023 NBA Per Game Split Stats - Starting/Off Bench
Loading Split Stats...
2023 NBA Per Game Split Stats - Days Rest
Loading Split Stats...
2023 NBA Per Game Split Stats - Vs Opp
Loading Split Stats...
2023 NBA Per Game Split Stats - By Result
Loading Split Stats...
Advanced Stats
Loading Advanced Stats...
2023
2022
Stat Review
How does Walker Kessler compare to other players?
This section compares his stats with all players from the previous three seasons (minimum 200 minutes played)*. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that stat and it would be considered average.
  • True Shooting %
    An advanced statistic that measures a player's efficiency at shooting the ball that takes field goal percentage, free throw percentage, and three point percentage into account.
  • Effective Field Goal %
    A statistic that adjusts field goal percentage to account for the fact that three-point field goals count for three points while field goals only count for two points.
  • 3-Point Attempt Rate
    Percentage of field goal attempts from three point range.
  • Free Throw Rate
    Number of free throw attempts per field goal attempt.
  • Offensive Rebound %
    An estimate of the percentage of available offensive rebounds a player grabbed while they were on the floor.
  • Defensive Rebound %
    An estimate of the percentage of available defensive rebounds a player grabbed while they were on the floor.
  • Total Rebound %
    An estimate of the percentage of available rebounds a player grabbed while they were on the floor.
  • Assist %
    An estimate of the percentage of teammate field goals a player assisted while they were on the floor.
  • Steal %
    An estimate of the percentage of opponent possessions that end with a steal by the player while they were on the floor.
  • Block %
    An estimate of the percentage of opponent two-point field goal attempts blocked by the player while they were on the floor.
  • Turnover %
    An estimate of turnovers committed per 100 plays.
  • Usage %
    An estimate of the percentage of team plays used by a player while they were on the floor.
  • Fantasy Points Per Game
    NBA Fantasy Points Per Game.
  • Fantasy Points Per Minute
    NBA Fantasy Points Per Minute.
True Shooting %
66.3%
 
Effective Field Goal %
66.0%
 
3-Point Attempt Rate
5.4%
 
Free Throw Rate
26.6%
 
Offensive Rebound %
12.3%
 
Defensive Rebound %
23.1%
 
Total Rebound %
17.7%
 
Assist %
5.6%
 
Steal %
0.9%
 
Block %
9.2%
 
Turnover %
12.7%
 
Usage %
12.8%
 
Fantasy Points Per Game
26.1
 
Fantasy Points Per Minute
1.1
 
Loading Player Stat Review...
Total
Per Game
Per 36
NBA Historical Fantasy Stats
How are these ratings calculated?
Our historical fantasy ratings are standard scores calculated using 8-Category settings with 12 teams and 13 players per team.
Loading Historical Fantasy Stats...
NBA Per Game Historical Fantasy Stats
Loading Per Game Historical Fantasy Stats...
NBA Per 36 Historical Fantasy Stats
Loading Per 36 Historical Fantasy Stats...
Historical ADP
Loading Historical ADP...
Jazz Depth Chart
Our full team depth charts are reserved for RotoWire subscribers.
Subscribe Now
Jazz Rotation: Minutes Breakdown
Loading Jazz Rotation Data...
Average Fantasy Points
Average Fantasy Points are determined when Walker Kessler was active vs. non-active during the season. Click here to view average fantasy points for a different time period.
Minutes
FanDuel
DraftKings
Yahoo
FantasyDraft
Head2Head
Sorare
Loading Average Minutes...
Loading FanDuel Points...
Loading DraftKings Points...
Loading Yahoo Points...
Loading Head2Head Points...
Loading Sorare Points...
Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring Walker Kessler See More
NBA DFS Picks: DraftKings Plays and Strategy for Thursday, April 11
14 days ago
Dan Bruno prepares fantasy managers for Thursday's NBA slate, providing advice for building a DraftKings DFS lineup.
NBA DFS Picks: DraftKings Plays and Strategy for Tuesday, April 9
16 days ago
Dan Bruno has news, notes and advice for managers looking to participate in Tuesday's massive NBA slate on DraftKings.
NBA DFS Picks: DraftKings Plays and Strategy for Sunday, April 7
18 days ago
Dan Bruno highlights his favorite picks for Sunday's DFS main slate on DraftKings.
NBA DFS Picks: FanDuel Plays and Strategy for Sunday, April 7
18 days ago
A few Kings are discussed on Sunday's FanDuel NBA preview as they visit the Nets.
NBA Waiver Wire: Widely Available End-of-Season Adds
20 days ago
Looking to add players for the final week of the NBA season? Gabe Allen has you covered with a myriad of options, including Utah's Taylor Hendricks.
Latest Fantasy Rumors
Back-to-back Rising Star
CUtah Jazz
January 31, 2024
Kessler is set to participate in his second consecutive Rising Stars Game at NBA All-Star weekend. He is currently dealing with a toe injury.
ANALYSIS
Despite being a starting center for just 53 games in his NBA career, Kessler is racking up accolades, being named to the Rising Stars Game for both of his eligible campaigns as well as being rostered for Team USA during the 2023 FIBA World Cup. Kessler's shot-blocking prowess has been on display in January, which has yielded 7.5 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.7 blocks in 20.7 minutes across 16 appearances.
See All NBA Rumors
2022 Fantasy Outlook
After initially being drafted by the Timberwolves, Kessler was abruptly traded to Utah as part of the Rudy Gobert deal. Landing with the Jazz, Kessler actually finds himself in what could be a favorable spot as the potential starting center. Coming out of college, Kessler was regarded as arguably the best rim protector in the draft, averaging 4.6 swats in just over 25 minutes per game last year at Auburn. His skillset could translate quite well into fantasy, especially if the Jazz opts to roll with him as their primary option. Currently, he will be battling Udoka Azubuike, Kelly Olynyk, Cody Zeller for center minutes heading into camp. Kessler is intriguing as a standard-league flier for fantasy managers who need help in that category at the end of drafts. However, he'll likely be a more practical draft pick in deeper formats.
More Fantasy News
Ruled out for Sunday
CUtah Jazz
Nose
April 13, 2024
Kessler (nose) will not play Sunday against the Warriors.
ANALYSIS
Subscribe now to instantly reveal our take on this news.
Won't play Friday
CUtah Jazz
Nose
April 12, 2024
Kessler (nose) has been ruled out for Friday's game against the Clippers, Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune reports.
ANALYSIS
Subscribe now to instantly reveal our take on this news.
Another absence coming
CUtah Jazz
Nose
April 10, 2024
Kessler (nose) is out for Thursday's game versus the Rockets, Sarah Todd of The Deseret News reports.
ANALYSIS
Subscribe now to instantly reveal our take on this news.
Ruled out for Tuesday
CUtah Jazz
Nose
April 8, 2024
Kessler (nose) won't play Tuesday against the Nuggets, Ben Anderson of KSL News Salt Lake City reports.
ANALYSIS
Subscribe now to instantly reveal our take on this news.
Not playing vs. Warriors
CUtah Jazz
Nose
April 6, 2024
Kessler (nose) is out for Sunday's game against the Warriors, Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune reports.
ANALYSIS
Subscribe now to instantly reveal our take on this news.