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The Los Angeles Lakers are the odds-on favorite to land Walker Kessler if the Utah Jazz trades the 23-year-old center.
Bovada listed the Lakers as the +350 frontrunner to acquire Kessler. The New Orleans Pelicans, who have a hole in the middle, are the bettors’ second-best choice at +500.
The 7-foot-1 Utah center is off to a solid start this season he was slowed down by injuries last season.
In four starts, Kessler is filling up the stats sheet with 8.5 points, a career-high 10.5 rebounds and 2.5 blocks with 1.5 assists and 1.0 steals.
Last season, he was the league’s second-best shot blocker with 2.4 per game, behind San Antonio Spurs Rookie of the Year Victor Wembanyama (3.6).
Lakers coach JJ Redick openly said in the summer that he wanted a bruising center to play next to Anthony Davis.
“You certainly have to look at what I think is actually a very good roster, a very balanced roster,” Redick said in an interview with Justin Termine and Eddie Johnson on Sirius XM NBA Radio in July. “We’d love to, we tried, but we’d love to, at some point, get another five man, a big bruising five man.
“You look at the Western Conference right now, whether it’s Denver, Minnesota, OKC with what they added, certainly Memphis, they’re going to be back in the hunt, they added Zach Edey, certain matchups in the playoffs, you’re going to need a lot of size.”
But the Lakers were unable to acquire one.
Walker Kessler Can Help Lakers’ Defense
While Kessler is not the prototypical bruising big man, he is a potential double-double machine and one of the best shot-blocking big men in the NBA today.
A potential twin-tower lineup of Davis and Kessler could fortify the Lakers’ defense, which is currently ranked 17th entering October 30 games. Getting their defense on par with their fifth-ranked offense or at least closer to top-10 could enhance the Lakers’ championship odds.
But what could keep the Lakers from trading for Kessler is Utah’s high-asking price.
“All of the intel out of Utah has been ‘it’s a high price’ for Walker Kessler. They’ve been asking for a couple of first-round picks,” The Athletic’s Jovan Buha said on his podcast “Buha’s Block” on August 9.
Fox Sports analyst Rich Bucher said on X that Jazz CEO Danny Ainge is “not doing a deal that he *believes* could help the Lakers.”
It is highly unlikely the Lakers would also agree to trade away their two future first-round picks for a role player like Kessler.
In September, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin reported that Lakers vice president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka said, “The team is open to trading their two available first-round picks if any deal they would be involved in can help secure ‘sustained Lakers excellence.'”
Anthony Davis’ Monster Start
In the absence of a big man trade, Redick is doing an excellent job of making do with what he has.
Jaxson Hayes is Davis’ primary backup, with Christian Wood still recovering from knee surgery.
Hayes often plays alongside Davis in the first few plays when he enters the game in the closing minutes of the first and third quarters.
Getting a big man is a top priority for the Lakers to get the pressure off Davis, who is having a monster start to the season.
Davis was just named the first NBA Western Conference Player of the Week this season.
In four starts, Davis is averaging a career-high 32.8 points, 12.0 rebounds 3.3 assists, 2.5 blocks and 1.5 steals.
Help is also coming as 7-foot-center Christian Koloko finally got his clearance from the NBA, according to ESPN, to resume his basketball career after a blood clot issue kept him out of the league entirely last season.
The Lakers picked him up in the offseason and signed him to a two-way contract.
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