Jazz's Walker Kessler Reveals Why He's Shooting More 3-Pointers

The Utah Jazz have seen third-year center Walker Kessler add an intriguing perk to his game in the final stretch of the 2024-25 campaign: confidence in his three-point shot.

During his previous two showings vs. the Chicago Bulls and Minnesota Timberwolves, albeit two losses, Kessler has made sure to keep the shots coming from deep –– shooting a collective 11 three-pointers in two contests, ultimately seeing one go through for a 9.9% total clip from deep.

It's a major development to Kessler's game, as the three-point shot hasn't been something to note in the first three seasons of his career. In fact, the 11 threes from his past two performances have been more than he's attempted throughout the 50 games before in year three.

Following his six threes taken vs. Chicago, Kessler was asked what sparked the new change in his offensive attack, noting that the chance came from a green light directed by head coach Will Hardy.

"Coach [Hardy] is a big proponent of players trying to get better and expand their games," Kessler said. "He's kind of given me, for these last 13 games, the go-ahead to try and work on it. Trying to find where I can get my shots. I'm very, very appreciative of him to give me the opportunity to work on it. I believe in myself to know that I can do that. I need to get back in the rhythm of how to do it. It's been a long time since I've really done that in volume."

Kessler, who's remained a major building block for the Jazz's defensive game plan, could benefit immensely by adding a three-point shot into his skillset to become a dynamic threat on both ends of the floor.

So far, the idea hasn't quite come to fruition. Kessler's shooting a career 20.5% from three with 39 total attempts, but it's not for a lack of confidence.

And moving forward into the last chunk of the season, don't expect things to change for Kessler, either.

"I'm not worried about it," Kessler continued following his game vs. the Bulls. "I know coach believes in it. I believe in it. So, I'm just going to continue to work on it, and continue to let it fly."

It's hard to knock the Jazz and their staff for trying their hand at extending Kessler's range. Utah is far from the playoff picture or any ounce of inching into contention, clearly more focused on maximizing the odds of this offseason's lottery pick. Perhaps Kessler shooting more threes is exactly what the Jazz needed to accomplish their goal of tanking the rest of the way.

The strategy falls in line with the Jazz's current crash course season of development. Even if the shots don't fall, gaining that experience and repetition will inevitably play a critical factor in Kessler's offensive progression and extending his versatility moving forward.

In the words of the big man himself, he plans to continue to let it fly. All we can do is sit back and watch the show.

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