Dating back to February’s NBA trade deadline, reports indicated that the Los Angeles Lakers had some high interest in Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler and tried their best to pry the young center away before their efforts were ultimately rebuffed.
However, as we now enter the start of this summer’s NBA offseason, and one where both Los Angeles and Utah could have their fair share of roster changes, it begs the question: Could the Lakers pursue a trade for Kessler once again
Lakers insider Jovan Buha of The Athletic recently broke down as to why a Kessler trade to the Lakers might be one a bit too out of reach–– mainly centering upon the Jazz’s high asking price for the young big man.
“I think the issue with Walker Kessler and with Utah in general is their asking prices tend to be higher, and I think trading for Lauri [Markkanen] or Walker is going to be a high price,” Buha said on his latest Q&A session. “Going back to last season, I reported that the Lakers had had interest in Walker previously, and they had inquired about him to the Jazz, and the feedback they got was the starting price, not the final price. The starting price was the equivalent of two-plus first-round picks.
The Jazz clearly value their 24-year-old center at a steep value as the big man of the future for their long-winded rebuild, so for a deal for any team to acquire him, it’ll have to come at an expensive price.
And for the Lakers, it seems tough to see a package come to form that’s strong enough to entice the Jazz front office, especially if just the starting price lands at two first-round picks. That doesn’t even include others like Austin Reaves or Dalton Knecht, who may also be non-negotiables for Utah in any deal surrounding Kessler’s services.
During his most recent season in Utah, Kessler had career-highs in points (11.1) and rebounds (12.2), and remained a steady force on their defensive interior for an otherwise horrific unit on that end of the floor. For the Jazz, all signs point to Kessler being a focal point of this rebuild for years to come instead of a valuable trade chip.
Realistically, the most likely outcome to transpire this offseason will finish with Kessler signing a long-term, lucrative rookie extension with Utah to keep him in the fold long-term. It’s hard to imagine the Jazz truly shopping their young defensive centerpiece on the market, so if any opposing GM desperately wants to land him, it’ll have to pair with an unrefusable trade offer
