The Los Angeles Lakers are expected to be active during the offseason, particularly in finding a talented center.
That comes as no surprise since the 2025-26 NBA season will be Luka Doncic and LeBron James‘ first full campaign as teammates.
The Los Angeles Lakers already have a good supporting cast with the likes of Austin Reaves, Dorian Finney-Smith, and Rui Hachimura, but adding a quality center could help the team get over the hump in the postseason.
Following the blockbuster Anthony Davis trade, the Lakers relied on Jaxson Hayes as their first-option center. However, it was evident in the playoffs that head coach JJ Redick didn’t trust Hayes.
Now, Hayes is rumored to be leaving the Lakers as an unrestricted free agent. Keeping that in mind, the Lakers have been linked to a plethora of talented big men to fill the void.
Among them is Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler. In fact, Lakers analyst Mike Bresnahan recently shared his thoughts on the possibility of Kessler becoming a Purple and Gold player.
“I like this play for the Lakers. A shot blocker. He’s a rebounder. He’s a tough guy, a strong dude. I don’t know about the scoring part,” Bresnahan said on Lakeshow.
For context, Kessler averaged 11.1 points, 12.2 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game while shooting 66.3% from the field in the 2024-25 season.
Adding to that was Kessler’s phenomenal shot blocking as he averaged 2.4 blocks per game. So, Bresnahan stated, Kessler is an elite defender, but he’s not that gifted on the offensive end of the floor.
Before Kessler, the Purple and Gold were consistently rumored to be attempting to trade for Indiana Pacers star Myles Turner.
However, so far, the Lakers’ attempts haven’t resulted in any success. Keeping that in mind, Bresnahan implied that the team should focus on Kessler as Turner’s boat has ‘left the shore.’
“I think the Myles Turner boat has kind of left the shore for good. I think that’s out. We started talking about that over a month ago, almost six weeks ago, when the Lakers got eliminated,” Bresnahan stated.
Considering Turner’s Pacers are currently facing off against the Oklahoma City Thunder in the 2025 NBA Finals, it isn’t hard to believe that the Lakers should realistically take the 29-year-old off their radar.
