Player Profile: Houston Kessler

Previously:  Dusan Langura 
Previously:  Brandon Young

Houston Kessler

Photo Credit:  www.georgiadogs.com

Height:  6'8"
Weight: 225
Position:  F
Year:  RS Sophomore
Role: Return of the Newman
2013-14 Points/Rebounds/Assists Per Game:  .2/.5/.1



Overview:  On April 24, 2012, Tony Parker committed to UCLA in one of the more bizarre ceremonies you're ever going to see.  The news was met with a great deal of disappointment within the Bulldog nation, as he would have filled a huge void in the post and, at times, appeared headed to Georgia.

On April 25, 2012, Houston Kessler committed to play his college ball at the University of Georgia.  The news was met with a big, fat sigh.  It looked like another case of Mark Fox missing out on plan A and falling back to plan D.

Despite the fact that Parker hasn't yet made a huge splash for the Bruins, it's hard not to wonder what might have been if he had come to Georgia.  This is no shot at Kessler.  The name, of course, should be familiar, as both his father (Chad) and his uncle (Alec) played ball at UGA and were drafted.

Kessler, though, probably could have walked on instead of using what could have been a valuable scholarship (one that, the cynical will say, Fox would have squandered anyway).  As it was, though, he took that scholarship (as he should have!), red-shirted, then saw limited action in his RS Freshman season.

A surprise start on the road at Auburn and a 3-pointer 47 seconds into the game were surely the highlight of his season.

Expectations:  In my (completely non-scientific) projections, I have Houston averaging 1.5 minutes per game, but that is spread out over the entire season, not over games played.  In other words, this past season, he played 26 total minutes, and I'm betting he doubles that this year.

It is hard not to think of Steve Newman when writing about Kessler.  The measurables are almost identical, and I suspect we will see Houston develop into a similar player - a bigger guy who is more comfortable on the perimeter and is a sneaky-good shooter.

However, Newman had the advantage (if you want to call it that) of playing on less talented teams, and thus earned more minutes.  He played 19.5 minutes per game his senior season.  19.5!

The fact that he's a big body gives him the slight edge over Langura in my "impact" rankings.  For Houston, the key will be to maximize his minutes.  It doesn't matter if it's crunch time or garbage time.  Run the offense, show an ability to body up in the post, and hit some 3's.  If he does that, the minutes will find him.

2014-15 Stats I Could Get Excited About:  .2/.5/.1 points/rebounds/assists per game.

Things I Learned About Houston From GeorgiaDogs.com:  He says his nickname is "Houston."  Come on now.  We can do better than that.

Your Very Necessary Where-Is-Steve-Newman-Today Update:   In case you were wondering where Steve Newman is now, I don't know for sure, even after Googling him.  I can tell you he was something called a Cloud Sherpa in 2012, though, and it appears he is still there today.  I'm sure he is representing the Bulldog Nation well wherever he is.

Let's go Houston, and let's go Dawgs!