The Utah Jazz have exercised team options for 24-25 on the rookie scale contracts of guard Ochai Agbaji and center Walker Kessler.
Agbaji played in 59 games (22 starts) in his first professional season, averaging 7.9 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 1.1 assists in 20.5 minutes per game. In his last 15 games (all starts) in 2022-23, he logged averages of 14.7 points, 2.9 boards, 2.5 assists in 30.9 minutes per contest, logging a career-high 28 points against Denver on April 8. Originally picked with the 14th overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft by Cleveland, the Kansas City, Mo., native helped Kansas to a 2022 National Championship as an All-America First Team selection, being named the NCAA’s Most Outstanding Player during the Final Four.
Kessler was a 2022-23 All-NBA Rookie First Team selection following his first season where he averaged 9.2 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks in 74 games (40 starts). He was the first rookie since Tim Duncan in 1997-98 to record at least four games with seven-or-more blocks in a single season and was the first Jazz rookie to ever log a 30-point, 10-rebound game, doing so on the road against Sacramento on March 25 and also the first Jazz rookie to notch a 20-point, 20-rebound performance, doing so at Minnesota on Jan. 16. A native of Newnan, Ga., he was drafted in the first round of the 2022 NBA Draft by Minnesota with the 22nd overall pick. He represented the USA Men’s Team at this summer’s 2023 FIBA World Cup.
