How Lakers will make marquee addition of Walker Kessler worth it

As Walker Kessler walked onto UNIQLO Field at Dodger Stadium on Thursday night, he stepped into the biggest spotlight he’s been under recently. And as the Lakers’ marquee addition of the summer, the attention on Kessler will only grow as the start of the 2026-27 NBA season nears.As part of the Dodgers’ “Lakers Night” ahead of their win over the Cardinals, Kessler, who sported a custom No.14 Dodgers jersey with his last name on the back, threw out the ceremonial first pitch — a pitch that got across home plate. Before the night ended, Kessler replied with a familiar acronym on the Dodgers’ Instagram post collaboration with him and the Lakers: “ITFDB” — It’s Time For Dodger Baseball.A great way to introduce himself to his new home market. But for Kessler to further ingratiate himself to Los Angeles fans, he’ll need to live up to the investment the Lakers made to acquire him from the Jazz in a sign-and-trade in July. It’s a challenge Kessler is ready for. As a reminder, the Lakers not only sent the Jazz two of their unprotected first-round draft picks (2031 and 2033), which were the last two first-rounders they had full control over to trade, along with two first-round pick swaps (2028 and 2030) to secure Kessler, but they also signed the 7-foot-2 big man to a four-year, $130 million contract.The deal starts with a $30.1 million salary for 2026-27, making him the 10th-highest-paid center in the league (restricted free-agent big man Jalen Duren’s 2026-27 salary from his contract will likely meet or surpass Kessler’s). A significant investment for a player who hasn’t made an All-Star, All-NBA or All-Defense team, and is coming off playing five games after having left shoulder surgery in November. “It definitely makes you feel a certain way when you know an organization believes in you,” Kessler said in July.

“And I think what they’ve invested, they’re showing that belief in a monetary value, not just with money, but like ...