While I don’t understand why some are questioning the type of player Walker Kessler is, I can understand why some have suggested that the Los Angeles Lakers might have overpaid a bit to land him.
Ultimately, the Lakers believed that they needed to add a really good player around Luka Doncic at the center position and were able to do just that with one of the best defenders in the NBA and a guy who can go up and catch lobs for Doncic. Ultimately, this is a trade the Lakers hope will work out, and I believe there is reason to think it will.
It’s also really cool to hear Kessler come out and say the things he has early on in his Lakers tenure. He hasn’t even played a game yet, but his early comments suggest he’s ready to do whatever it takes to win, and he even said he’s ready to run through a brick wall for his team because of what they gave up for him.
“It definitely makes you feel a certain way when you know an organization believes in you,” Kessler said on Monday during his first media availability since joining the Lakers, H/T SB Nation.
“And I think what they’ve invested, they’re showing that belief in a monetary value, not just with money, but like you said, assets. And for me, I’m somebody that if I know that they have that belief in me, I’m gonna run through a brick wall for them. That’s just how I’ve been wired my whole life and it definitely makes it a lot easier to go out there and compete for a team.”
With the Lakers moving the type of assets they did to land Kessler, it’s important to hear him say he understands there’s some pressure coming into Los Angeles because of what the organization gave up to get him.
Unfortunately, that can cause some unneeded pressure at times, but there certainly is some here, as making the financial and asset commitment that Los Angeles did to land him is always going to bring more pressure than if he were to just sign as a regular free agent or be a player who was landed for a few second-round picks.
