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    • The Lakers were interested in a young and promising center
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    The Lakers were interested in a young and promising center

    Eira Gwyneth Posted on

    Maybe the Los Angeles Lakers, who started the new NBA season 3-0, are better than many national experts thought. Maybe they’re even not far away from becoming a championship contender and just need time to solidify and another member of the squad.

    While Anthony Davis has played at an MVP level to start the year, they have a bit of a hole at backup center. Jaxson Hayes’ performance has been spotty and Christian Wood is still out after undergoing knee surgery a few weeks ago. The Lakers signed 2022 second-round draft pick Christian Koloko in hopes he would help, but the seven-footer has yet to be cleared to play by the NBA after missing last season with a blood clot issue.

    According to The Athletic beat writer Jovan Buha during a recent episode of “Buha’s Block,” they have been interested in Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler (h/t Sports Illustrated).

    “I think we need more time to see which guys become available,” Buha said (49:25). “I think Walker Kessler is a name that the Lakers were interested in that would make a lot of sense and allow you to either start a two-big look or probably more realistically bring him off the bench.”

    Kessler is a promising young center for Utah who has already developed into a good rebounder and shot blocker. He averaged 8.1 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.4 blocks in 23.3 minutes per game last season after being selected with the No. 22 pick in the 2022 draft. At 2.10 m tall and weighing 110 kg, he has a wingspan of 2.10 m, although he is not a particularly agile midfielder in terms of running speed.

    Still, he would be a great candidate for LA if Jazz manager Danny Ainge, the former Boston Celtics guard, was willing to trade him to the Purple and Gold.

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    Eira Gwyneth
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