Ever since leaving Auburn, Walker Kessler has been proof of concept for Bruce Pearl's resume at the NBA level. Kessler entered the Plains a raw project, left it an NBA-ready player, and now enters restricted free agency this summer as a bona fide star ready to cash out on a $30+-million annual salary over the next several years.
Whether that will be with the Utah Jazz is the nine-figure question hovering over the franchise this summer. There are rumblings that Kessler is unhappy in Salt Lake City. I recently spoke to long-time NBA insider Brandon "Scoop B" Robinson, who's heard the same, and asked if Kessler and the Jazz are headed towards a split. Robinson believes the Jazz's crowded frontcourt, which also includes Lauri Markkanen and Jaren Jackson Jr., makes for an awkward fit. Then he offered two teams he believes fit Kessler "like a glove": the Los Angeles Lakers and the San Antonio Spurs.
Robinson dove deep into the Spurs' possibility, particularly the draw of a Kessler-Victor Wembanyama inside-out duo. He also offered a silver lining if Utah does retain him sometime over the next several weeks.
"Walker Kessler, specifically, is of interest to the San Antonio Spurs and Los Angeles Lakers," Robinson told me. "The San Antonio Spurs are a Walker Kessler or a Draymond Green-type player away from being a championship team. Victor Wembanyama can't be tall by himself. He needs some help in the defensive department and with scoring, whether you classify him as a 4 or a 5, and if you were to bring in a Walker Kessler-type player...he'd fit like a glove.
"I have also heard Walker Kessler is unhappy in Utah because, what are they doing? Although sometimes that 'what are you doing?' turns into a masterpiece. People were saying that about (Knicks GM) Leon Rose six years ago."
How can the Spurs land Walker Kessler?
In terms of creating the salary cap space necessary to sign Kessler, San Antonio has a clear path to cap space that may be hard to pull off: trading De'Aaron Fox. The unpopular former Kentucky Wildcats point guard came up short in major NBA Finals moments in Game 4 (especially) and Game 5, arguably costing Wembanyama and the Spurs the Larry O'Brien Trophy. Getting off of Fox's $51+-million contract for 2026-27 that eventually balloons to over $60 million by 2029/2030 will be a challenge, unless the Chicago Bulls suddenly fall in love with his game. With Josh Giddey on a $100 million contract, it'd be a strange fit salary-wise and on the court.
If San Antonio could get off of Fox's deal, there's a very clear path to a Kessler offer sheet. Of course, teams may not be willing to take on Fox's deal, knowing that the Spurs could be adding the missing piece to a potential dynasty in Kessler. A Wemby-Kessler duo immediately becomes the most physically dominant one-two frontcourt punch the Association will have seen since David Robinson and Tim Duncan were winning championships over two decades ago in the silver, black, and white.
While landing Kessler would fill the biggest need San Antonio has after battling a physical New York Knicks team in the finals and losing on the boards, it'd take someone out there willing to take Fox to make it happen. Even the Spurs cutting other salaries might not create enough space for an offer sheet for Kessler.
We'll see if San Antonio can get creative here. Kessler would be great finishing lobs from Luka Doncic in LA, but he'd be even better doing the dirty work for Wembanyama in Central Texas.
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