Walker Kessler NBA free agency update doesn't bode well for Lakers

The Los Angeles Lakers need to bolster the center position this offseason, and Utah Jazz restricted free agent Walker Kessler is a potential target.

Kessler played in just five games in 2025 due to shoulder surgery, but when healthy, the 24-year-old is one of the best young big men in the NBA and is a double-double threat on any given night while providing elite shot-blocking.

There's no denying that Kessler would be an upgrade over Deandre Ayton for the Lakers, but it sounds like his free agency market is a lot more competitive than we thought.

Kessler has multiple offers with over $30 million annually

With Kessler being one of the most sought-after free agents on the market, the 7-foot-2 center is meeting with interested teams, and according to Tony Jones of The Athletic, Kessler has offers in the mid-to high-$30 million per year range that include player options.

"Utah Jazz restricted free agent Walker Kessler has had meetings with a couple of teams and is headed to another meeting, league sources tell The Athletic. He holds multiple offers in the mid to high 30’s annually, along with structure of his choice, including player options," Jones reported.

The Athletic's Dan Woike also added that the Lakers are indeed among the teams in Kessler's sweepstakes.

"One of the teams with interest in Kessler, sources tell me, is the Los Angeles Lakers," Woike reported.

Though Kessler is an ascending player and would fill one of the most pressing needs on the Lakers' roster, the former first-round pick is coming off an injury, hasn't played more than 70 games in a season since his rookie year, and isn't an upper-echelon center, so signing him to a deal in the $30-$40 million range would be an overpay.

It also isn't great news that multiple franchises are willing to throw lucrative offers at Kessler. At this point, it isn't out of the realm of possibility that a team heavily interested in Kessler offers him a deal worth over $40 million annually and outbids Los Angeles.

Either way, this report from Jones isn't great news for the Lakers. They are either going to overpay Kessler or miss out on him due to a competitive market.