Jake LaRavia is one of the few Lakers wings who survived the roster overhaul, which gives his read on the defense some weight. Asked how the group looks different beyond the addition of Walker Kessler, he did not hedge.

“We got some problems this year,” LaRavia said in a press conference. “We got a lot of wing depth.”

Asked Jake LaRavia about the changes of the Lakers defense (non-Walker Kessler division)

LaRavia mentioned Ziaire Williams, Adou Thiero, Matisse Thybulle, and Quentin Grimes as assets defensively

"We got some problems this year. We got a lot of wing depth" pic.twitter.com/3naey1BKoy

— Law Murray 💀 (@LawMurrayTheNU) October 1, 2026

He named names. Ziaire Williams, Adou Thiero, Matisse Thybulle and Quentin Grimes all drew praise, with LaRavia singling out Williams for a strong training camp and Thybulle for piling up steals.

“We got a lot of guys that we can go to on any given night, depending on whatever the matchup is,” LaRavia said. “I'm excited to see what it looks like.”

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The optimism is not his alone. Kessler said this week that people are underrating Los Angeles' perimeter defenders and predicted the unit would be nasty, and a Day 1 camp report identified perimeter defense as the standout of the opening session.

That represents a genuine shift. Perimeter defense has been among the franchise's clearest weaknesses in recent seasons, a problem that became glaring against teams built around volume three-point shooting. The Lakers addressed it directly this summer, stacking the wing rotation with defensive-minded additions.

Kessler is the headline move. Los Angeles acquired the 7-foot-2 center from Utah and signed him to a four-year, $130 million deal in July. He missed most of last season with a shoulder injury but was among the league's best rim protectors in 2024-25.

JJ Redick has made the priority explicit, listing the installation of new defensive principles around Kessler as his first objective for camp. Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves and Kessler are the only players locked into starting spots, with the remaining two decided over the coming weeks. The competition on the wing is crowded, involving Grimes, Collin Sexton, Thybulle, Williams, Cameron Carr and Thiero.

LaRavia is in that mix too, competing at power forward alongside Sandro Mamukelashvili and Jarred Vanderbilt. He averaged 8.2 points in 82 games last season on a two-year deal that has already looked like a bargain.