Report: Lakers are interested in Walker Kessler

Report: Lakers are interested in Walker Kessler

Fresh of winning Gold the Olympics, Anthony Davis has dominated the first four games and the Los Angeles Lakers are off to their second 3-1 start since 2010-11.

The Lakers are still searching for a center, however, as signing Christian Koloko to a two-way deal was an obvious short-term solution for extra depth. According to Lakers insider Jovan Buha of The Athletic, the Lakers may have interest in one young Utah big man.

“I think we need more time to see which guys become available,” Buha said, according to Jared Koch of Sports Illustrated.. “Walker Kessler is a name that the Lakers have been interested in that would make a lot of sense and would allow you to either start a two-big look or probably more realistically bring him off the bench.”

Kessler, entering his third season with the Jazz, doesn’t appear to be apart of the team’s future long-term plans. He’s been made available in trade talks after a down sophomore season, including with the New York Knicks before they acquired All-Star big man Karl-Anthony Downs days before the start of training camp.

Kessler is one of the best young defensive bigs in the NBA, averaging 8.7 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.4 blocks across 23.2 minutes in 141 career games. Through three games to start this season, he’s posted 10.0 points, 11.3 rebounds and 2.7 blocks, including a 16-point, 14-rebound, 5-block performance on opening night against the Memphis Grizzlies.

The 7-footer is in a crowded frontcourt with All-Star big Lauri Markkanen, John Collins., second-round pick Kyle Filipowski, Drew Eubanks and Oscar Tshiebwe (two-way contract).

His theoretical fit offensively isn’t seamless next to Davis, but that defense would be terrifying with two exceptional shot-blcokers. Plus, Davis wants to add another center to take the load off him as the season wears on. The Lakers don’t have any center depth outside of Jaxson Hayes and Koloko, which is an issue–especially if Davis misses any time.

Anthony Davis’ Dominance Through 3 Games Cannot Go Unnoticed

The Lakers also don’t own their 2025 or 2027 first-round picks, so they are only eligible to trade their 2029 and 2031 picks with swaps available in 2026, 2028 and 2030. Would players plus that limited stash of draft capital be enough to sway Danny Ainge in a potential trade? That remains to be seen. The Lakers wouldn’t have much leverage, but one of their keys to making noise is adding any conceivable depth–especially at center.

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