Lakers Are 3–0 — But Kessler's Backup Problem Has a Price
GOATIFYThe Los Angeles Lakers are 3–0, Luka Dončić has already scored 52 in a game, and Walker Kessler looks like the interior partner the franchise spent the summer trying to find. That is the version of the opening week worth celebrating. The more uncomfortable version starts when Kessler sits down.
A fresh report has put the Lakers’ backup-center search back into focus: discussions for Milwaukee big man Jericho Sims reportedly stalled over whether the price should be one second-round pick or two. Meanwhile, veteran Brook Lopez has just shown Los Angeles what a skilled reserve center can do, scoring 22 points against the Lakers in a Clippers uniform. Neither name is a confirmed incoming player. Both illuminate the same question: how much of a contender’s promising start survives when its most important rim protector needs a rest?
Winning three games is a reason to be optimistic, not a reason to pretend a thin position has become deep. The Lakers have an opportunity to solve a relatively narrow roster problem before it becomes the weakness every playoff opponent targets.
Kessler changes everything — and the minutes without him are the warning
Kessler’s arrival has changed the geometry of Los Angeles possessions. Defenders who once could step into the lane to crowd Dončić now have to account for a seven-footer diving behind them. On the other end, a reliable shot blocker lets perimeter players pressure the ball without treating every mistake as an uncontested layup. That combination is why the Lakers invested so heavily in a young center with both size and mobility.
The first night of the season made the appeal impossible to miss. Against Golden State, Kessler finished with 26 points on a perfect 12-for-12 shooting, nine rebounds and two blocks. The Lakers won 127–105. Dončić’s passing and Kessler’s timing gave Los Angeles a simple, repeatable source of efficient offense: force a defense to commit to the ball, then punish the help with a catch near the rim. Kessler also recorded a major defensive performance in the next victory over the Clippers.
Yet the early on-off numbers tell a much less comfortable story about the rotation. Through the first three games, Los Angeles has reportedly been 28.8 points per 100 possessions worse with Kessler off the floor. Three games are far too small a sample to treat that as a stable projection; opponent lineups, hot shooting and substitution patterns can exaggerate any split. The figure is nevertheless a useful alarm bell because it aligns with the visible roster concern: the Lakers do not have a second player who reproduces Kessler’s combination of vertical reach, rim deterrence and finishing threat.
The injury context makes the problem more than theoretical. Kessler missed nearly all of last season with a shoulder issue, playing only five games. His current performances suggest he is ready to make a huge impact, but a team cannot build a championship rotation around the assumption that its starting center will never need reduced minutes, a rest night or time to recover. A dependable alternative would protect both Kessler’s workload and the Lakers’ preferred style of play.
Looney still has value — but the Lakers need a different kind of insurance
Kevon Looney has earned his reputation as a professional who understands angles, timing and physical basketball. His work on the glass, his screens and his ability to keep possessions organized helped Golden State win championships. Those skills do not disappear because he now wears purple and gold. The mistake would be to evaluate him as though he had been signed to be another Kessler.
At 6-foot-9, Looney does not supply the same size at the rim. He can occupy a defender, make a sensible pass and create second-chance opportunities, but opponents are less likely to reorganize an entire half-court attack because he is waiting in the paint. That distinction matters in a lineup built around Dončić. When the starting center rolls hard, help defenders face a dilemma. When that vertical pressure diminishes, opponents can load more bodies toward the ball and make Los Angeles create difficult shots late in the clock.
It would also be unfair to blame one reserve for an on-off number that reflects five-man combinations. The bench needs ball pressure, rebounding, defensive communication and enough shooting to stop opponents from collapsing inward. A backup center is not a magic switch for all four problems. But if the roster is short on size and speed behind Kessler, it asks every other reserve to compensate for those shortcomings at once.
There is a sensible role for Looney even if Los Angeles adds another big. He can be useful in matchups that demand sturdy screening, experience and possession control. Some opponents will still be vulnerable to that slower, more deliberate style. A new acquisition should expand JJ Redick’s choices rather than automatically erase a veteran from the rotation. The objective is not to win a comparison between two centers in isolation; it is to give the Lakers a credible answer when the first choice cannot cover every situation.
Brook Lopez made his case in the same building — but a reunion is not automatic
Brook Lopez offered a timely demonstration of the alternative. In the Clippers’ October 23 loss to the Lakers, the 38-year-old scored 22 points on 8-of-9 shooting, made both of his three-point attempts and blocked three shots in fewer than 20 minutes. Los Angeles still won 125–117, but Lopez showed why a reserve big can matter even without commanding star minutes. He gave the Clippers an offensive outlet and a defensive presence every time he checked in.
The appeal to the Lakers is straightforward. Lopez can space the floor in a way Kessler and Looney generally do not, pulling a defender away from the paint and creating driving room for Dončić or Austin Reaves. His shooting would let Redick build second-unit lineups around a pick-and-pop threat rather than another exclusively interior finisher. He is also an experienced positional defender who knows how to protect the basket without relying on constant highlight-reel athleticism.
But the argument has limits. Lopez is 38, and his mobility in space is not identical to his value in the paint. Against teams that repeatedly force switches and chase slower centers into the perimeter, he could become the target instead of the solution. A strong game against the Lakers is evidence of useful skills, not proof he would be the best option for every matchup or remain this productive across a full season.
There is also a difference between a player who looks attainable and a deal that exists. The Clippers have their own roster priorities and no obligation to help their city rivals. A trade would require a price that makes sense for both sides, not merely a convincing television argument. Lopez played for the Lakers during the 2017–18 season, so the reunion storyline writes itself, but nostalgia should be irrelevant to the decision. The correct questions are whether his current game fits the rotations, whether the contract and assets work, and whether the Lakers would still have enough flexibility to address a different weakness later.
The Jericho Sims disagreement reveals what the Lakers are really buying
The reported Sims discussions are revealing because the gap was so small on paper. Milwaukee was said to want two future second-round picks; Los Angeles reportedly offered one. Those picks are not the glamorous currency of superstar trades, but a contender can use them to replenish depth, take a chance on a developmental player or grease the wheels of another transaction. Declining to pay an extra pick is not automatically evidence of indecision.
Sims, a 6-foot-10 center, would address a different part of the problem from Lopez. His appeal is athleticism, energy and vertical play around the basket. That could preserve more of Kessler’s rim-running identity in second-unit minutes. The uncertainty is how much the Lakers could trust his offensive reads, defensive positioning and execution in a playoff environment. Through Milwaukee’s first three games, he had appeared for only two minutes in one contest, hardly a strong case for treating him as a proven rotation upgrade.
That is why the Lakers should define the job before falling in love with a name. Is the primary need to survive non-Kessler minutes against elite rim attackers? Is it to add a shooter who opens space for the guards? Is it to protect the starter’s health by absorbing routine regular-season minutes? Different answers produce different targets. Lopez offers skill and experience, Sims offers athletic potential, and Looney offers established screening and rebounding habits. None is an exact substitute for the others.
Los Angeles should also avoid letting the unbeaten start create a false sense of urgency. The first three games show that the team can win with its current group. They do not show that every weakness must be solved immediately, or that the right trade partner will be available this week. A measured search can be more valuable than a hasty move, provided the front office does not wait until an injury or playoff series exposes the gap under maximum pressure.
The most productive outcome may be a relatively modest acquisition: a center with a clearly defined 12-to-18-minute role, enough defensive reliability to keep the structure intact and a price that leaves room for a second move. The Lakers do not need a second star at center. They need to stop asking their first one to cover for the entire position.
Los Angeles can be genuinely excited about its start. Dončić is dictating games, Kessler has transformed the interior and the team is unbeaten. None of those positives contradicts the concern about the backup-center rotation. In fact, they make it more important: when a team suddenly looks capable of a deep run, a small structural weakness can carry enormous consequences.
Lopez would add shooting and veteran protection, Sims would add a different athletic profile, and Looney still offers useful habits. The front office should not chase the most familiar name or surrender extra picks simply to announce a move. It should find the center who keeps the Lakers recognizable when Kessler rests. That is how a 3–0 start becomes more than a promising opening week.
