Sep 3, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers player Walker Kessler prepares to throw out a ceremonial first pitch before a game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Through three games, the Los Angeles Lakers have not seen Walker Kessler in preseason action due to a finger injury. With only two exhibition games remaining, the hope for head coach JJ Redick is to have his full roster available for one of them, although it remains to be seen if that will be the case.
One of the biggest question marks surround the Lakers roster is how they will look defensively without Kessler in the lineup given their lack of center depth. As Redick continues to evaluate his new roster, he shared what he believes are the keys to lineups without Kessler.
“I think it’s important to have two of the bigger wings out there for rebounding purposes. That was a concern just coming into the year, trying to be a good defensive rebounding team,” Redick said after practice on Saturday. “What does that look like with Walker not on the court? I think in film it’s pretty apparent we need to do a better job of boxing out, just simple stuff and gang rebounding. That hurt us the other night. We’ll figure that out, but I think the biggest thing is trying to keep with the same sort of limited playing time and getting guys reps and building them up. But having two bigger wings out there, Luka, Adou, Mamu, whoever that may be, as a wing with non-Walker lineups.”
Redick is spot on with his philosophy of having two wings out there when Kessler is out because of their lack of center depth. The two notable names that he pointed out were Adou Thiero and Sandro Mamukelashvili, two of L.A.’s notable standouts so far in preseason.
Kevon Looney, at this stage of his career, cannot be relied on to play high minutes due to his shortcomings athletically and defensively. So, there needs to be a greater sense of urgency to contain the perimeter, which would be a different mindset as opposed to Kessler being out there.
Hopefully, the 25-year-old big man can get out on the floor to get live game reps and feel how it is to play with his new teammates. That way Redick can see how these puzzle pieces fit and make adjustments as needed.
Latest updates on Walker Kessler and Collin Sexton?
While the preseason has shown promising signs for the Lakers, they need to see how this team looks fully healthy before Opening Night. Los Angeles is awaiting positive injury news on a handful of players, mainly Kessler and Collin Sexton, as they have not made their respective debuts.
After practice on Saturday, Redick provided updates on Kessler and Sexton and when they could be back in the lineup.