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The Lakers’ big move of the summer was pushing all their chips to the middle of the table to acquire Walker Kessler.
There are lots of boxes that Kessler checks as a rim-protecting center and a hard-screening lob threat. All that comes with the caveat of him being healthy.
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Kessler played the first five games of the season before a torn labrum forced him to have surgery and abruptly ended his campaign. Given how early into the season the injury occurred, it’s not a surprise that he has been cleared to play.
On Monday, Kessler spoke to the media in Las Vegas for the first time since joining the purple and gold and revealed his injury is healed (h/t Dave McMenamin/ESPN).
“It’s been cleared,” Kessler said. “It feels strong. It feels mobile.
“I’m just excited to play again. Sitting out a whole year definitely puts a lot of things in perspective. The heart grows fond in absence. Falling in love with this game again, I just want to go play to win.”
Given how much chemistry the new-look Lakers are going to have to build, it’s great news that Kessler is healthy and ready to go. The team’s new signings met in Vegas to hang out and scrimmage to start building said chemistry with Kessler among them.
Kessler has largely been a durable player in his career. While he only played 58 games in the 2024-25 season, most of that was because the Jazz, one of the most notorious tanking teams in recent seasons, were doing funny things down the stretch with Kessler.
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LA has placed a lot of faith in Kessler being the next center of the future. Fortunately, he’s going to be read to go from the jump this season to try to make good on that bet.
You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude or on Bluesky at @jacobrude.bsky.social.
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/walker-kessler-says-medically-cleared-152400910.html
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Publish date : 2026-07-14 15:24:00
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