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Walker Kessler says he\u2019s eager to shoulder the expectations placed upon him when the revamped Lakers host the Golden State Warriors.<\/p>\n
EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) \u2014 Walker Kessler is well aware of the long, legendary lineage he is joining when he debuts as the Los Angeles Lakers\u2019 starting center on Wednesday night.<\/p>\n
And as if the pressure of following in the cavernous footsteps of George Mikan, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Shaquille O\u2019Neal, Pau Gasol and Anthony Davis wasn\u2019t enough, Kessler is also playing competitive basketball for the first time in nearly a full year after missing almost all of last season with a shoulder injury.<\/p>\n
This clearly is no ordinary opener for Kessler, but the 7-foot-2 center says he\u2019s eager to shoulder the expectations placed upon him when the revamped Lakers host the Golden State Warriors. After beginning his career with four losing seasons for the Utah Jazz, spotlights and expectations are something that Kessler wanted and needed.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m just so excited to get back out there,\u201d Kessler said Tuesday after practice at the Lakers\u2019 training complex. \u201cIt\u2019s been a long time since I played a real NBA game. As far as the (Lakers) history, I\u2019m just so grateful this organization gave me a chance, and to compete for an organization that has the history it does.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Lakers are betting big on Kessler becoming worthy of the lineage he\u2019s joining.<\/p>\n
They depleted the majority of their remaining draft capital to get him, dealing two first-round picks and two more pick swaps to the Jazz in a sign-and-trade deal. Kessler\u2019s contract is for four years and $130 million \u2013 a healthy sum for a player who has never averaged more than 11.1 points per game in anything approaching a full NBA season.<\/p>\n
Los Angeles made the deal because of Luka Don\u010di\u0107\u2019s longstanding desire for an elite center who can finish Don\u010di\u0107\u2019s dizzying array of lobs and feeds while also protecting the rim behind the iffy perimeter defense sometimes played by Don\u010di\u0107 and Austin Reaves. Although minor injuries and caution limited the Lakers\u2019 new Big Three to only a few minutes together in the preseason, Kessler\u2019s new teammates are impressed by his defensive effectiveness so far in practice.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe paint is kind of closed when he\u2019s on the court,\u201d Don\u010di\u0107 said.<\/p>\n
On paper, Kessler fills every need the Lakers had in the middle last season, when Deandre Ayton and Jaxson Hayes usually provided not much more than serviceable play at center. But asking Kessler to fit in immediately with an entirely new team is a significant challenge, coach JJ Redick acknowledges.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s never played with a player like Luka before,\u201d Redick said of Kessler. \u201cHe\u2019s never really been tasked with being the anchor of a defense. These are things that we think he can be (at an) All-Star level, but it\u2019s going to take time. It\u2019s going to be a process with him.\u201d<\/p>\n
There\u2019s also the matter of rust: Kessler\u2019s most recent appearance in an NBA game that counted was on Halloween last year. He aggravated a previous shoulder injury and eventually had surgery to repair a torn labrum, sidelining him for the remainder of Utah\u2019s 22-win season.<\/p>\n
The Jazz lost 221 games in Kessler\u2019s four seasons in Salt Lake City, and he has acknowledged his excitement about moving to a team with a history of 17 championships and a more recent track record of six playoff appearances in the past seven years. Los Angeles is a demanding basketball city, but Kessler says he wants to win as much as any fan.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was here for Luka\u2019s opening night (in February 2025), and it was insane,\u201d Kessler said. \u201cThe fan base is unreal, and the energy is great. Playing for them, you could place on yourself a little bit of pressure, but I look at it as an opportunity to play for such a great franchise.\u201d<\/p>\n
Los Angeles won the Pacific Division and made the second round of the playoffs last spring, albeit with a roster featuring only a handful of the players who will suit up with the new center this week. The new-look Lakers are firmly built around the established offensive brilliance of Don\u010di\u0107 and Reaves \u2013 but they\u2019re also counting on the expected two-way contributions and defensive improvements anchored by Kessler.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs far as the belief they\u2019ve shown in me, it makes me excited for this year,\u201d Kessler said. \u201cIt makes me feel like I can run through a brick wall for this organization, this team, my teammates. I\u2019m just so excited.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Walker Kessler says he\u2019s eager to shoulder the expectations placed upon him when the revamped Lakers host the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":889541,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[64],"tags":[355,99,372969],"class_list":["post-889540","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nba","tag-nba","tag-sports","tag-walker-kessler-los-angeles-lakers-center"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/889540","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=889540"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/889540\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/889541"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=889540"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=889540"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=889540"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}