Lakers Get Good Trade News on $27M Top Big Man Target Amid Kessler Injury

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NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - OCTOBER 23: Walker Kessler #24 of the Utah Jazz reacts against the New Orleans Pelicans during a game at the Smoothie King Center on October 23, 2022 in New Orleans, Louisiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)

The Los Angeles Lakers are still waiting on star big man Walker Kessler, the team’s marquee offseason acquisition, to make his preseason debut. 

The Lakers have gone 2-1 this preseason, with both victories over the inner-state rival Sacramento Kings. Kessler has yet to suit up, but there is growing optimism that the 25-year-old center could make a return to the court as soon as Tuesday’s contest against the Golden State Warriors. 

But Kessler joining his teammates on the court won’t cure all problems for the Lakers. If this preseason has shown anything, it is that L.A. could struggle mightily if Kessler misses time during the regular season … heck, maybe even when he checks out of the game to catch a darn breather. 

Lakers Can Go After Frequently-Rumored Trade Target

Since July, Chicago Bulls big man Jalen Smith has been a focus of Lakers trade rumors, especially after The Athletic’s Dan Woike reported Smith was one of three backup centers L.A. could go after. While nothing has been reported about the Lakers potential interest in Smith since, it would make sense for the franchise to get Smith while it can. According to Bulls reporter Elias Shuster, Smith is among multiple players the Chicago front office wouldn’t mind trading immediately.

“This leads us to the Bulls, who are suddenly rather deep at the center position,” Shuster wrote for Sports Illustrated. “Their Top 3 options, when healthy, are all capable bigs: Nic Claxton, Jalen Smith, and Zach Collins. Tiago Splitter has even suggested that he could go three centers deep in the rotation this season. Nevertheless, it’s hard to imagine (VP of basketball operations) Bryson Graham rebuffing phone calls about any of the three centers. Smith and Collins, in particular, are on relatively cheap, expiring deals that could be of interest to a contender. The former is owed $9.4 million, while the latter is making $8.0 million.”

Smith isn’t a player who leaps off the stat sheet — he may never be — but the 26-year-old big man could consistently deliver 15 minutes per game off the bench, and more importantly, he would give the Lakers a routinely playable option behind Kessler, who has shown a bit of an injury history in his young NBA career.

When Will L.A. Pounce?

Many Lakers fans feel nervous about the team entering the season with Kevon Looney — the 30-year-old, three-time NBA champion signed in the offseason — as the only other traditional center on the roster. If this were some years ago, Looney would have been one of the best backup big men in the league, but that Looney, who helped those dynastic Warriors teams, no longer exists. (No, we’re not exactly concluding that he is 30-going-on-40, but it has sometimes looked that way in preseason.)

While general manager Rob Pelinka has opened the door to a potential trade, the likelihood that L.A. strikes a deal for an impact big man seems rather low at this point in the calendar. But once the season gets underway and closer to the midpoint, we may see a deal get done.

“I think this is something that is probably going to be resolved closer to the trade deadline, to be completely honest,” said Lakers reporter Jovan Buha of the team’s thin center depth. “There’s maybe a world in which some team decides to trade with the Lakers now, but I think their assets, particularly some of the expiring contracts that they have, will have more value closer to the trade deadline. I would say that this might be a situation that reveals itself in time.”