On Sunday, Auburn big-man Walker Kessler announced that he will be declaring for the NBA Draft. He also informed ESPN’s Jonathan Givony that he is “fully committed to the NBA Draft” and has already hired an agent. With that being the case, Kessler will not have an option to return to the Plains for another season.
On Sunday, Kessler was named as the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year. Along with that award, the Georgia native has also received others. He was also recognized by the SEC as the conference’s best defensive player. His ability to block shots and make game-changing dunks will certainly be missed next season. The North Carolina transfer averaged 11.4 points per game and grabbed 8.1 rebounds per game. Not to mention, he led the country in total blocks with 155.
In Bleacher Report’s latest mock draft, Kessler is projected to be drafted No. 23 overall to the San Antonio Spurs. The pick makes a lot of sense for the Spurs if the front office decides to take Kessler. With one true center (Jakob Poeltl) on the team, they could certainly use a defender like Kessler. His ability to guard any position on the floor and ability to block shots will separate him from the other Centers in the NBA Draft.
As for the Tigers, head coach [autotag]Bruce Pearl[/autotag] will likely turn to rising-junior [autotag]Dylan Cardwell[/autotag] and incoming-freshman [autotag]Yohan Traore[/autotag] as Kessler’s replacement. Both have a great amount of upside and should definitely be a huge part of future Auburn success in 2022. We still haven’t heard from projected lottery pick [autotag]Jabari Smith[/autotag] or wing [autotag]Allen Flanigan[/autotag] on their decisions. It is likely that Smith enters and signs an agent. On the other hand, Flanigan will likely return to the Plains for his senior year. The loss of Kessler certainly stings, but the future for Auburn is bright. I look forward to seeing what Kessler does at the next level.
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— Walker Kessler (@WalkerKessler13) April 3, 2022