Walker Kessler is already giving the Lakers a new wrinkle they didn’t have before, and it could end up mattering just as much as his rim protection.
Los Angeles’ biggest move to open the post-LeBron James era was the sign-and-trade with the Utah Jazz to land the two-way center, a deal that instantly changed the shape of the roster. The Lakers made it clear they wanted to fix the middle of the floor, and Kessler gives them that defensive anchor in the paint for the foreseeable future.
What makes this even more interesting is that Kessler is not arriving as a one-dimensional shot blocker. Even though he appeared in only five regular-season games for Utah last season, he showed real growth as an outside shooter.
Before last year, he lived almost entirely in the paint. Then he turned himself into a big man who could step out and do damage, hitting 75 percent from three on nearly two attempts per game.
That progress showed up again during training camp practice on Saturday, when Kessler offered a glimpse of the work he put in this offseason on his shot from deep, according to Daniel Starkand of Lakers Nation.
The fit around him could make that development even more dangerous. Playing next to Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves should leave Kessler with cleaner looks from three than he ever had in Utah, where the attention those two draw with the ball can open up the floor in a hurry. If that holds, Kessler can become a real threat from outside, not just a center who occasionally stretches the defense.
He also brings another element the Lakers want badly: a lob threat. Kessler talked about that side of his game during media day, and after signing a massive four-deal with Los Angeles, he said he is all in and ready to “run through a brick wall” for the franchise and his teammates.
Doncic made it clear to the organization after last season that he wanted a better center in the paint, one that played to his strengths. He was looking for a steady lob target and a defender who could hold down the middle. The 25-year-old Kessler fits both demands, and Doncic admitted he wanted him the entire time.
There are still plenty of questions around how this remodeled roster will mesh around Doncic and Reaves. But the upside is obvious. If Kessler becomes the stretch-five version of himself and keeps anchoring the defense, he could be the piece that unlocks the whole thing.
That’s the bet for the Lakers now: that Kessler can help them make noise on both ends and push the franchise back into the title picture in the Western Conference alongside the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder.
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