As Los Angeles Lakers fans anxiously await Walker Kessler's debut, ESPN's Tim MacMahon questions whether the 7-foot-2 center can help his team climb into championship contention in 2026-27. After the Lakers inked Kessler to a $130 million extension, it cemented their core alongside All-Star Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves.

However, Kessler will have to improve on the defensive end of the floor for the Lakers to compete in the competitive Western Conference, according to MacMahon, per ESPN's The Hoop Collective podcast.

“Kessler has to be a much better screener than he had been in Utah. He needs to focus on that aspect of the job; that's going to be awfully important,” MacMahon said. “And I still think he needs to improve defensively. He's a great shot-blocker; can he be a great defensive anchor? There's a difference. He needs to be a great defensive anchor. Length, athleticism, and shooting. You can argue they have the shooting part. This is not a team that has length and athleticism. How they're going to get it at this point? I don't know.”

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With the defending Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs and the 2025 champion Oklahoma City Thunder leading the pack as teams with the best odds to reach the NBA Finals in 2026, ESPN's Tim MacMahon's concerns for Walker Kessler and the Lakers are legitimate. Especially when you consider how teams such as the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Denver Nuggets should make the rest of the West landscape interesting this upcoming season.

Also, the Portland Blazers have Damian Lillard making his long-awaited return to the franchise he led for nearly his entire career. He'll team up with two-time champion Jrue Holiday and newly acquired guard Ja Morant to help the Blazers build on their 42-win season last year.

The Houston Rockets are also in the mix, making the new-look Lakers, who parted ways with All-Star LeBron James, Deandre Ayton, Marcus Smart, Rui Hachimura, and Luke Kennard during the offseason, difficult to gauge where they'll land in the Western Conference standings this season.