As the Los Angeles Lakers work to build around Luka Doncic, one of their most sought-after trade targets is expected to be on the market.
The Los Angeles Lakers boast one of the best Big Threes in the NBA, with Luka Doncic, LeBron James, and Austin Reaves all playing high-level basketball. However, James will turn 41 years old next season, and the Lakers are trying to rebrand as “Luka’s team.”
Luckily for the Lakers, the Dallas Mavericks outlined an excellent plan for getting the most out of Doncic. He led them to the NBA Finals in 2024 before being traded to the Lakers, and the Mavericks found success pairing him with defensive-minded wings, an efficient scorer down low, and a high-level secondary facilitator.
In James, Reaves, and Dorian Finney-Smith, the Lakers have most of the pieces in place around Doncic, although they still need their version of Daniel Gafford. Luckily, the Utah Jazz are expected to field offers on Walker Kessler, who the Lakers have long been linked to.
Photo by Alex Goodlett/Getty ImagesWalker Kessler would be ideal Lakers’ addition
Kessler, much like Gafford, is a very efficient scorer inside the paint, and he is a better defender. Neither can stretch the floor with any degree of reliability, although James, Doncic, Finney-Smith, and Reaves can all shoot, so having one weak link is no issue.
Even before they added Doncic, the Lakers had rumored interest in Kessler, and are expected to be his most aggressive suitor this offseason.
The Jazz, after multiple years of dragging their feet, seem interested in trading their best players.
“Numerous league sources have indicated that they believe the Jazz are going to be active over the next several weeks,” reported the Desert News’ Sarah Todd. “League sources have said that they expect for conversations to include Walker Kessler.”
The Lakers offered Dalton Knecht and a first-round pick to the Charlotte Hornets for Mark Williams before he failed his physical, and an offer for Kessler is expected to be similar, although the Jazz, led by Danny Ainge, are not expected to be eager to do business with Los Angeles, so the Lakers might have to be amenable to shelling out more assets than he could be worth.
Unless Danny Ainge has left the Jazz organization, I can assure you he’s not doing a deal with the Lakers, much less one that helps them. https://t.co/LYVuazCtTF
— Ric Bucher (@RicBucher) October 29, 2024
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Kessler would play a familiar role next to Doncic
When he played for the Washington Wizards, Gafford was one of the more efficient interior scorers in the league. When he was paired with Doncic in Dallas, he became the most efficient interior scorer in the league.
There is reason to believe that Kessler would find similar success.
Player (Span)PPGRPGBPGFG%Daniel Gafford (2023-24 Wizards)10.98.02.269.0%Daniel Gafford (2023-24 Mavericks)11.26.91.978.0%Walker Kessler (2024-25 full season)11.112.22.466.3%Luka Doncic’s impact on Daniel Gafford
Gafford, while talented, was not on the same level as Kessler. If the Lakers manage to trade Knecht, a 2030 pick swap, and a 2031 pick for Kessler, their championship-hopeful roster will be set, and they would still have some money to spend in free agency, provided that they are willing to pay the luxury tax.
Gafford saw massive improvement alongside Doncic, and the Lakers would depend on Kessler to have the exact same success, which seems realistic, allowing James to compete for another championship in Hollywood.