Jazz Mailbag: Can Cody Williams Be As Good As His Brother?

SALT LAKE CITY – Welcome to the Utah Jazz mailbag where this week we look at whether rookie Cody Williams can be as good as his brother, Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jalen Williams.

Each week we will send out a prompt on X asking for the questions you have about the Jazz.

Then, we’ll respond to as many as we can in that week’s mailbag.

Can Cody Williams become better than his bro?

— J Brandon Olson (@UnderParOls) September 3, 2024

Question: Can Cody Williams become better than his brother?

Answer: The short answer is it’s very unlikely that Cody Williams ever becomes as good as his brother Jalen who is on the rare trajectory to become a top 20 player in the NBA.

Jalen is currently the second-best player on the best team in the Western Conference. At just 23 years old, he should have plenty of room to build on his already terrific foundation as a two-way wing with a better-than-20-point-per-game average and upper-echelon defensive instincts.

I see a Jaylen Brown-type future for the eldest Williams brother, which means perennial All-Star, All-NBA candidate, with the potential to be a top-tier playoff performer.

Related: Will All Three Jazz Rookies Play?

Now, that isn’t a knock on Cody who still hasn’t truly started his NBA career, but simply a safe bet that even the number one overall pick in most drafts doesn’t become as good of a player as his brother Jalen.

With that said, Cody does enter the NBA with some advantages over his brother, and the Jazz will provide the rookie with every opportunity to become a star at this level.

First, Cody has a definitive height advantage over his brother entering the league at 6-foot-6.5 without shoes, whereas Jalen measured in at 6-foot-5.75 in shoes at the NBA combine.

if I had my OKC uniform this flick would have been so crazy !!! pic.twitter.com/yY8bA9W7y4

— therealjalenwilliams (@jdubwttp) July 7, 2024

Cody was also a much higher-rated high-school recruit as the fifth-ranked prospect while Jalen was ranked 235th (though a late growth spurt allowed him to go under the radar).

The Jazz rookie was a better player as a freshman in college averaging nearly 12 points, three rebounds, and 1.6 assists on an NCAA Tournament team while Jalen averaged 7.7 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 1.9 assists on the seventh-ranked WCC team.

Furthermore, there was legitimate momentum for Cody to be the top overall pick in the 2024 draft class before a series of midseason injuries derailed his production, while Jalen needed a strong pre-draft process to move into the lottery.

A look at Cody Williams’ shooting mechanics 👀

The Colorado Freshman 6’8” Forward came in at No. 2 on our latest Big Board.

🎥: @albertoeghim #NBADraft x #GoBuffs pic.twitter.com/YPCkofHTHL

— No Ceilings (@NoCeilingsNBA) February 16, 2024

So, imagine a hypothetical where Cody and Jalen were twin brothers as opposed to being born three years apart.

Based on their high school rankings, physical tools, and production as college freshmen, Cody would be a more highly sought-after draft prospect, while Jalen would be thought of as the lesser of the two.

However, Jalen’s dramatic improvement between his first and third years in college, teamed with his explosion at the NBA level is rare for any player, and expecting Cody to match that is an unfair precedent.

But, if Cody does match that talent growth over the next four years of his development, the Jazz will have a bona fide star on their hands, and with his superior size, he would likely then be better than his brother.

How do you think the walker Kessler/john Collins pairing will get worked out this year?

— Denny B Kartchner (@dennybradk) September 3, 2024

Question: How do you think the Walker Kessler/John Collins pairing will get worked out this year?

Answer: Barring a radical change in the way Walker Kessler or John Collins play, I don’t see much room for growth between the two this season.

Though their body types are different, both are best defensively at the center position, and most effective as rollers in the pick-and-roll on offense.

Kessler is a far better rim protector than Collins, though Collins’s floor spacing and rim finishing are superior to Kessler’s.

 

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In today’s NBA, there just isn’t room for the two to share the floor, especially with how limited each player is as a passer and playmaker.

With the league’s premium on three-point shooting, I’d imagine Collins is again the Jazz’s starting center this season after he showed marked improvement over the second half of last year.

After averaging 14.0 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 0.9 assists on 49 percent shooting from the floor and 37 percent from three in his first 34 appearances,  the first-year Jazzman averaged 16.2 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 1.4 assists on 57 percent shooting from the floor and 37 percent shooting from three over his final 34 games.

If he were to continue that production this year with the Jazz, Collins could be an intriguing trade target for a team needing a rotation-level big, and a dark horse candidate to opt out of the final year of his deal in hopes of landing more guaranteed money.

Kessler on the other hand sits in an unenviable situation in Utah.

Still in just the third year of his rookie deal, the Jazz have team control over the center for the foreseeable future and can utilize him on the roster however they see fit.

Related: Jazz Reportedly Shopped Walker Kessler

The Auburn product has been mentioned in trade rumors throughout the summer, but with an average salary of just $4 million over the next two years, the team can be patient with Kessler’s development without feeling like he’s burning a hole in their pocket.

If Kessler outperforms Collins during training camp, the Jazz should be happy to start him. If he doesn’t, they can relegate him to a backup role while feeling little pressure to force-feed him minutes.

I think it’s unlikely that both players will be on the roster at this point next summer, but picking who will stay and who will go is a toss-up.

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Ben Anderson is the Utah Jazz insider for KSL Sports and the co-host of Jake and Ben from 10-12p with Jake Scott on 97.5 The KSL Sports Zone. Find Ben on Twitter at @BensHoops or on Instagram @BensHoops.

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