What they're saying about Walker Kessler

Walker Kessler went off Monday.

In a Utah Jazz 126-125 win over Minnesota, the former Auburn standout matched his career-high in points (20) and set a new best in rebounds (21). He added four assists and two blocks.

Kessler, a 7-foot rookie, seems to be coming into his own of late.

For the season, he averages 7.5 points and 7.2 boards a game. But in the past five outings, he’s at 12.8 and 12.8.

Monday, Kessler’s performance came against the team that traded him last year.

Memphis took Kessler with the 22nd overall pick but shipped him to the Timberwolves. Two weeks later, he was traded to Utah.

Monday, he was the talk of the NBA.

Here’s what they saying about Kessler …

-“Walker Kessler turned in a tremendous game on Monday to lead the Utah Jazzto victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves, and the rookie made a bit of history in the process.

Kessler recorded 20 points, a career-high 21 rebounds, four assists and two blocked shots in the 126-125 win on the road. He went 9-of-13 from the field in 31 minutes of work for his first game with at least 20 points and 20 rebounds.

The 22nd pick registered the first 20-20 game by a rookie since Gorgui Dieng, who had 22 points and 21 rebounds on March 20, 2014. He is the only rookie in Jazz history to accomplish the feat and just the ninth player in the NBA to do so this season.” — YAHOO!

-“Walker with 20 points and 21 rebounds was sensational. He did so many good things for us. … He has shown so much growth on both ends of the floor but I think defense comes naturally to Walker in a lot of ways and his ability to learn on the fly on the offensive end had been tremendous.” — Jazz coach Will Hardy.

-“While Jazz fans have long lamented (Rudy) Gobert’s loss and the previous Jazz era that went with it, Kessler has steadily ushered in a new era. A highlight dunk here. A blocked shot there. One or two wow moments each night; plays that a 21-year-old rookie should have no business making.

But on this Martin Luther King Jr. day matinee, Walker Kessler put it all together. He scored 21 points and grabbed 20 rebounds. He handed out four assists and blocked a pair of shots. He recorded the franchise’s first 20-20 game for a rookie and the first 20-20 game for a rookie in the NBA since 2014. He recorded the league’s first 20-20 game on at least 65 percent shooting since 1993. He did this to the team that traded him. He did this to the team that traded for Gobert. When Gobert left Monday’s contest early with right groin soreness, the likes of Naz Reid, Nathan Knight and Luka Garza had no answer for him.” — The Athletic

-“The Jazz traded away Gobert and Donovan Mitchell as they planned to start a rebuild, but the outstanding play from Lauri Markkanen and Kessler have the Jazz at 23-24 on the year and in contention for a playoff spot. 

It looks like the Jazz won the trade with the Timberwolves as they secured Kessler. The rookie from Auburn has proven over his first 45 games that there is a bright future ahead. 

Kessler will develop into a star in this league over the years thanks to his elite defense and ability to score around the rim. This will be a joy for Auburn fans to sit back and watch.” — SI.com

-“In October, Walker Kessler sat in the Jazz locker room and joked about his ‘long and prosperous’ era in Minnesota. It was all jokes on the other side, too, with Timberwolves coach saying, ‘The Kessler Era here was an amazing one!’

At that point, it was all fun and games for everyone.

The Timberwolves and their fans were still in the honeymoon phase of the blockbuster trade that landed Rudy Gobert for Kessler, Jarred Vanderbilt, Malik Beasley, Patrick Beverley and a hoard of draft picks. And anything Kessler did was just a bonus.

A few months later, feelings are a bit different. After Kessler’s second return to Minnesota, Wolves fans might just be feeling a bit ill about what they gave up.” — KSL.com

-“I think it’s safe to say that Monday evening was one that Minnesota Timberwolves fans would like to forget about. 

Unfortunately, it will probably be years — if not a decade or more — before they can move on.

While his stats may not seem the most impressive as a whole — just nine starts (43 games played) where he’s averaging 7.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 2.0 blocks in 19.7 minutes per game — Kessler more than passes when it comes to the eye test and analytics. 

His per-36 minutes stats are Gobert-esque; 13.6 points, 13.1 rebounds, and 3.6 blocks on 71.7% shooting. He leads all rookies in Win Shares, Box Plus-Minus, and Value Over Replacement Player, to name a few. His 2.0 blocks per game rank fourth in the NBA — the only player in the top 10 averaging less than 20 minutes per game.” — NBA.com