Utah Jazz guard Ochai Agbaji may have been added to the list of Jazz players that were “deemed off-limits” along with Lauri Markkanen and Walker Kessler, the Stein Line's Mark Stein wrote in a recent article.
“One trusted source, having read my recent item about Lauri Markkanen and Walker Kessler ranking as Utah’s only two players who have been deemed off-limits ahead of the Feb. 9 trade deadline, advised me to add one more name to the list: Rookie swingman Ochai Agbaji,” wrote Stein.
The 22-year-old rookie guard is averaging 3.9 points, 1.6 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game in 12.7 minutes per game for the Jazz this season, according to Basketball Reference. Agbaji has played in 28 regular season games since he was selected with the 14th-overall pick in the 2022 NBA draft, including in 12-straight games during the month of January. The 6-foot-5-inch guard scored in double digits in three games of the streak, going as high as 19 points as he didn't miss a single shot during an eight-point loss to the Chicago Bulls in the United Center.
There was a “rising belief leaguewide” that the Jazz were “open to listening to trade pitches to anyone on the roster” with the exception of Markkanen and Kessler. Markkanen is averaging a career-high 24.8 points per game since he and Agbaji were included in the blockbuster trade that sent guard Donovan Mitchell to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Though he didn't make the All-Star starters, Markkanen placed fifth among Western Conference frontcourt players with the fourth-most player votes, the seventh-most fan votes and the fifth-most media votes.
Kessler, who was selected with the 22nd overall pick in the NBA draft by the Minnesota Timberwolves, leads all NBA rookies with 91 blocks this season and owns the second-most rebounds behind Detroit Pistons center Jalen Duren, according to Basketball Reference. He racked up more than twice the amount of blocks that Toronto Raptors center Christian Koloko.
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