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Utah Jazz’s Walker Kessler should not be the early front-runner for the Defensive Player of the Year award

Related Topics: Walker Kessler, Utah Jazz

We like Walker Kessler. He’s going to be a great fit for the Utah Jazz and will be a multi-time Defensive Player of the Year winner when his career ends (barring injury). Yet, it’d be disingenuous to say he’s the front-runner for the award heading into the 2023-2024 season. Kessler only started 40 games last year and averaged just 23 minutes per game.

Kessler has a lot to do to improve himself. He’s on the way up, but he’s just 22 years old and has to prove he can compete against the best the NBA has to offer before we start saying things like “he’s the front-runner for the Defensive Player of the Year” award.