Walker Kessler was undeniably the Los Angeles Lakers' biggest acquisition of the off-season. Kessler signed with the Lakers on a four-year, $130 million contract as part of a sign-and-trade with the Utah Jazz.
Some feel that the Lakers overpaid for Kessler, but you can't deny the fact that LA needed to go out and get a starting-level center this summer to pair with Luka Doncic, and Kessler was arguably the best available option on the market.
Walker Kessler comes with a notable risk for Lakers
One concern about Kessler is durability. Standing at 7-foot-2 with a 245-pound frame, the former first-round pick out of Auburn appeared in just five games last season for the Jazz due to season-ending left shoulder surgery that he had in early November to repair a torn labrum.
You have to look at the 2024-25 NBA season to understand what Kessler brings to the table. Appearing in 58 games for the Jazz that year, Kessler logged 30 minutes per game and averaged 11.1 points per game, 12.2 rebounds per game, and 2.4 blocks per game.
When he's healthy, Kessler is undeniably one of the strongest rim protectors in the NBA, not to mention a lob threat. These are the two qualities that pair perfectly with Doncic, who requires a stout defense behind him and teammates on offense who can rise above the rim and finish his gorgeous passes.
Kessler is pumped to get back out on the court after a missed season
Speaking to the media recently as a member of the Lakers, Kessler expressed an eagerness to get out there and play again after so much missed time last season.
"I'm just excited to play again, man," Kessler said. "Sitting out a whole year definitely puts a lot of things in perspective. ... It's just going to be fun to play. That's my best version of myself, is just going out there and playing to win."
Health provided, Kessler has most of his career ahead of him. He's still only 25 years old. That being said, he's already accrued an impressive basketball résumé in his life. He was named NBA All-Rookie First Team in 2023 with the Jazz. This was coming off a final year in college in which he was named Naismith Defensive Player of the Year, First-team All-SEC, and SEC Defensive Player of the Year.
In high school, Kessler was a McDonald's All-American and Mr. Georgia Basketball in 2020.
Kessler is on a winning team for the first time in his pro career
This coming season will be the first time in Kessler's NBA career that he's playing in meaningful games on a contending squad (or at least the Lakers hope to be one).
It'll be fascinating to see if Kessler's body can hold up over the course of the entire season. He did play 74 games his rookie season, but his games played per season have diminished each year.
His sophomore NBA year saw him appear in 64 games, and then 58 in his third year, as aforementioned. All in all, Kessler has played in 201 NBA games over four seasons.
Optimists will say that Kessler's best basketball is ahead of him, and that may very well be the case ... if he stays healthy.
On the other hand, if Kessler turns into a guy who misses a ton of games each season, it'll be hard to defend Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka's decision to throw a bunch of money at Kessler this summer.
You can speculate all you want about what's going to happen, but we simply have to let things play out and see how Kessler performs, and if he can stay pretty durable over the next few seasons for the Lakers.
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