NBA Skills Challenge competition will have 1 surprising participant

Jun 2, 2022; San Francisco, California, USA; NBA commissioner Adam Silver talks to media before game one of the 2022 NBA Finals between the Golden State Warriors and the Boston Celtics at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports

The NBA is throwing a real curveball with this year’s Skills Challenge field.

On Tuesday, the league announced the participants (split into three teams) for the All-Star Weekend competition. Giannis Antetokounmpo and his two brothers Thanasis and Alex will form an “Antetokounmpos” team. There will also be a “Jazz” team (comprised of Utah Jazz trio Jordan Clarkson, Collin Sexton, and Walker Kessler) and a “Rooks” team (comprised of rookies Paolo Banchero, Jaden Ivey, and Jabari Smith Jr).

Skills Challenge Participants: pic.twitter.com/EsLxzPUIVb

— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) February 15, 2023

Since the three Antetokounmpo brothers already participated in last year’s Skills Challenge, the big surprise there is the inclusion of Kessler. The seven-foot rookie center has been a revelation for the Jazz this year with his superb interior play and shot-blocking. But Kessler is not much of a ball-handler or playmaker (0.8 assists per game) nor is he a long-range shooter (with zero total three-point attempts to this point of his NBA career).

Nevertheless, Kessler will get a chance to strut his stuff in front of his home crowd with All-Star Weekend taking place in Salt Lake City. He probably can’t do worse than this guy did at last year’s All-Star Saturday night.