LAS VEGAS — Lakers coach JJ Redick’s challenge for Walker Kessler is simple: Be “relentless”.
Relentless with his motor on both ends of the floor. With his running and changing ends in between possessions. With his screening and rolling towards the rim. With his rebounding.
The Lakers got that in abundance during their marquee acquisition’s preseason debut, which came in a 101-89 loss to the Warriors on Tuesday night at T-Mobile Arena in the team’s penultimate exhibition.
The 7-foot-2 center finished with 11 points, nine rebounds (two offensive boards), one block and one steal in 16 first-half minutes before sitting out of the second half.
Kessler, who the Lakers acquired from the Jazz as part of a sign-and-trade with the Jazz that included a four-year, $130 million contract for the big man, missed the first three preseason games after injuring his left pinky finger.
“He’s a great fit for our team,” Redick said of Kessler. “He did a nice job of running the floor, crashing, had some terrific rebounds in traffic [and] protected the rim. Just [a] really good first half from him.
“Overall really good for someone who didn’t play for, whatever it is, 10 days.”
Kessler’s impact on the Lakers was as massive as his 270-pound frame.
The Lakers won the 16 minutes he was on the floor by 15 points in what was Kessler’s first NBA game in nearly a full calendar year after he played just five regular season games in 2025-26 because of a season-ending left shoulder surgery.
“It was a lot of fun being out there again,” Kessler said. “It’s been so long. Before the game, I was actually pretty nervous, to be honest. But, getting out there and just playing with the guys, it was a blast.”
The No. 22 pick in the 2022 draft made his presence felt in the Lakers’ first possession without recording a statistic in the box score.
After Austin Reaves missed a pull-up 13-foot jumper out of the pick and roll with Kessler, the big man fought for the offensive rebound, with the ball bouncing off of Warriors rookie Yaxel Lendeborg’s hands and going out of rebounds, resulting in a team offensive rebound for the Lakers.
“JJ and I talked, and that’s kind of what we came up with this year: ‘Relentless,’ ” Kessler said. “And for me, that means just crashing every time, trying to be a presence in the paint, inside, outside, play hard, don’t take plays off, on the offensive end and defensive end. That’s going to be my goal for this year.”
After the Lakers inbounded the ball, Reaves ran another pick and roll with his new starting center, with the big man out of Auburn rolling hard to the basket and bringing in the Warriors low man (Gui Santos) into the paint, leading to Reaves making the drive-and-kick pass to Quentin Grimes for an open corner 3-pointer.
The Lakers created several open looks from beyond the arc because of Kessler’s roll gravity.
“He created probably four or five really good looks for us from 3 just rolling hard,” Reaves said. “Nobody’s gonna give him credit for it, but him putting pressure on the rim and roll opportunities gonna make the big guy sink, and we’re gonna get wide open 3s. We had quite a bit of them.”
With one more preseason game on Friday against the Nuggets in Los Angeles, and one week before the Lakers open the regular season against the Warriors at Crypto.com Arena, Kessler is looking to build off Tuesday’s showing.
“Just game feel, honestly,” he responded when asked what he’s looking to improve on. “That will come with time and just playing with the guys now that I’m cleared. Conditioning-wise, I actually felt good out there. First wind was a little tough, but after I got past that, my legs kind of got under me and I felt good.”
