The Los Angeles Lakers are off to an incredible start thanks in part to Walker Kessler’s role as the starting center. However, NBA legend Robert Horry doesn’t feel ready to praise Kessler and is calling out his flaws. Luka Doncic vouched for the Lakers to trade for Kessler and extend him on an expensive contract. The belief is that Kessler can be the starting center for the foreseeable future helping play in Doncic’s style.
Horry said the following when criticizing Kessler’s offense via his Big Shot Bob podcast:
“You know what’s really scary about Walker Kessler? Hey, I know guys in elementary got better post moves than him. He got no post moves, man. I’m like, who is teaching this dude any post moves? You’re seven f’ing feet tall. Get you a little jump hook, man. You don’t have to dunk everything.
I don’t even think he wants to score ’cause I’ve seen him get offensive rebounds and kick that out instead of crunching that. I’m like, dude, you’re 7 ft tall. Get you a power dribble. Go up and dunk that too. Like [Shaquille O’Neal], you monkey dunk that. That’s what he said. That’s what Shaq used to say. So dunk on somebody and then just move on.”
Horry called out Kessler for lacking paint moves and looking to pass the ball on offensive rebounds. However, today’s NBA style is different from when Horry played. The Lakers want Kessler to pass it back to better scorers like Luka or Austin Reaves for the best chance of scoring.
Why Robert Horry Is Wrong About Walker Kessler
Kessler joined the Lakers for a specific role, and it has worked effectively so far. The Lakers wanted to create a roster similar to when Doncic reached the NBA Finals with the Dallas Mavericks a few seasons ago.
A center who can hold his own defending the paint and scoring easy dunks is what the Lakers hoped to add to the roster. Acquiring Kessler from the Utah Jazz has been a success so far with the Lakers having one of the best records in the league.
The Lakers don’t even have a viable backup center due to Kevon Looney struggling to play NBA basketball at this stage of his career. Kessler has done what the Lakers need from him and plays a role in Luka’s historic start.
Lakers Have Become Fringe Title Contender
Most pundits viewed the Lakers as a secondary Western Conference threat expected to finish fifth or sixth in the West before the season. However, the Oklahoma City Thunder have witnessed a huge decline in talent due to a handful of injuries limiting their roster.
Anthony Edwards suffering an injury to rule him out for months to harm the Minnesota Timberwolves as another contender. The Lakers can take advantage of the West becoming a little weaker to have a high seed.
The trio of Doncic, Reaves, and Kessler are the engines that run this Lakers team to success or failure. Horry can question Kessler’s flaws, but he’s doing everything the team requires for overall successful results right now.
Robert Horry Rips Walker Kessler For “Elementary School” Offense