When the Utah Jazz needed it the most, Walker Kessler was there to stymie the Oklahoma City Thunder's attack during Thursday night's showdown between these teams in Salt Lake City. Kessler had a magnificent sequence for the Jazz late in regulation. He was the one who tied the game at 106-106 with a tip-in with only four seconds left on the clock in the fourth quarter.

Then on the following play, Walker Kessler absolutely snuffed a layup attempt by Thunder's Isaiah Joe to keep the score tied and send the game to overtime.

The crowd at Vivint Arena went wild after each play by Walker Kessler, who is viewed as one of the future cornerstones of the Jazz franchise.

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The Jazz ended up winning the game, 120-119, with Kessler finishing with seven points, 18 rebounds, and seven blocks, none bigger than the one he clobbered at the expense of Joe, who will now have to think more than twice going forward whenever he plans to attack the lane against Kessler and the Jazz.

Kessler is fast becoming one of the best rim protectors in the NBA. He entered the Oklahoma City game averaging 2.1 blocks per game, and that should get a bump after swatting away all those shots against the Thunder.

Walker Kessler was selected by the Memphis Grizzlies in the first round (22nd overall) of the 2022 NBA Draft before they traded him to the Jazz with TyTy Washington and Jake LaRavia.

The Jazz will look to win again on Saturday against the San Antonio Spurs at home.