Walker Kessler Discussion: Rim Protector And Lob Threat

Chet has a substantial better offensive bag. Mobley too. Embiid when healthy. Even Duren. Lively has no touch or moves, he's kinda basic on offense, which I think matters if we're talking "best center after Jokic". And ignoring Wemby ofc.
He's outstanding on defensive with his versatility, I remember seeing his on/off numbers in Dallas during that run and he was unbelievable. But I don't think he has a 2-way game to be in the tier 1 of centers, not to say he couldn't become an elite center on a championship team, if healthy.

If not wrong, he wasn't elite on rebounds either which matters too. He's good but clearly not top 5 and probably not top 10 either.

But I like him a lot and hope he gets healthy. Seems to be a nice kid too

 

healthy embiid doesn't exist. lively was more sophisticated and skilled offensively as a rookie than duren is now, imo. word was that lively's three point shot was pretty good in practice, and he has good touch on floaters. he has no moves, but unless you're jokic or embiid, your center should basically have no moves in the modern nba. you have to be absolutely elite in order to work possessions for two point shots that aren't dunks or layups.

mobley's not a center; he's basically never played there. chet's not a center, either, tbh.

anyway, again, it's largely a moot point because healthy lively may never exist again. but before the injuries, i believe he was on the path to being basically the ideal center for the way teams want to play now.

and all of this started because franko basically acknowledged this and said kessler was probably the next best fit, so it's good that we grabbed him.