The Lakers spent the offseason remaking their roster, and the front office made its biggest splash by landing Walker Kessler and Sandro Mamukelashvili. On paper, the additions give Los Angeles more size and shooting up front. In practice, they may also hand JJ Redick an early lineup puzzle.
ESPN reported that the Lakers acquired Kessler from the Utah Jazz for unprotected first-round picks in 2031 and 2033 and first-round swaps in 2028 and 2030. Los Angeles also signed Mamukelashvili, who NBA.com noted appeared in 80 games, including 13 starts, for Toronto during the 2025-26 season. He posted career highs of 11.2 points and 21.9 minutes, along with 4.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists, while shooting 52.3 percent from the field and 38.9 percent from 3-point range.
That’s a lot of money and draft capital tied up in two frontcourt pieces, and Lake Show Life’s Maxwell Ogden sees a possible complication for the Lakers. He wrote, “Unfortunately, Pelinka has backed Lakers head coach JJ Redick into a corner by signing both Kessler and Mamukelashvili to four-year deals with eight-figure annual salaries without knowing if they can share the court.
Unfortunately, there are a number of signs that point to that duo being unable to coexist. That's a rather daunting possibility considering Kessler signed a four-year, $130 million contract and Mamukelashvili joined the Lakers on a four-year, $52 million deal,”
The question is simple enough: can they actually work together?
For now, the Lakers still have to sort that out. Kessler is expected to start at center, and Los Angeles does not have a locked-in starting power forward beside him.
That leaves the door open for Mamukelashvili to begin games next to Kessler. But if the fit doesn’t hold up, Redick may have to push Mamukelashvili to the bench and use him to anchor the second unit instead.
That possibility is what makes this one of the most important early-season storylines in Los Angeles. If the pairing clicks, the Lakers get the frontcourt boost they were chasing. If it doesn’t, Redick could be forced into a difficult adjustment almost immediately.
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