The Los Angeles Lakers and Walker Kessler are turning into basketball fans’ favorite, or least favorite, will they or won’t they couple in Hollywood. The two sides have once again be reconnected in the rumor mill amid talks of rookie scale extensions.
Jake Fischer delivered his latest roundup of murmurings and intel from across the association. There is not a lot of positive belief regarding a long-term future for Kessler being immediately secured with the Utah Jazz.
Fischer wrote, “The Jazz and Walker Kessler, meanwhile, have no current momentum on an extension, sources say. Kessler is expected to enter restricted free agency next summer … while the Jazz decide in coming months whether to act upon the ongoing trade interest they are sure to receive.”
Where would that trade interest come from? The NBA insider was happy to remind everyone about how he and his partner Marc Stein have ‘written extensively’ about the Lakers’ interest in Kessler. The Phoenix Suns were also reportedly checking in, but that came before their trade for Mark Williams.
Walker Kessler remains the name Los Angeles keeps hearing about
I know, I know, Kessler is back. This story has been told before, countless times, over and over. Why invest in the stock of these rumors this time around? Well, because the circumstances are shifting in the Lakers’ favor.
Trading in the NBA is all about leverage. When it comes to Kessler, the Jazz are quickly losing it, while the Lakers have rapidly gained that aspect in these specific negotiations.
Why? Well, that’s pretty easy to answer, actually.
For starters, no extension for Kessler means less guarantees regarding his permanent future in Utah. Perhaps one could argue they still control that with his restricted rights in free agency. They could theoretically match any offer sheet presented to their young center.
However, teams always have a price in their mind when it comes to these kinds of situations. If another franchise comes with an offer that is beyond that point of comfort, things can change very quickly.
Guess who has money during the 2026 offseason. That would be Rob Pelinka and the Lakers.
The pressing need at center in Los Angeles is also not what it once used to be after the arrival of Deandre Ayton. That makes trading for Kessler a luxury to improve the frontcourt, and not a deadly necessity like it once was. Pelinka can comfortably enter any trade negotiations with the Jazz from a point of strength, not weakness. If the Lakers do truly believe in Kessler as their center of the future, the momentum for them to land their guy has quickly shifted in their favor.
