Walker Kessler Vows Lakers Will Fix Early Defensive Issues

The Los Angeles Lakers didn't look good defensively in their first loss of the season to the Portland Trail Blazers.

Oct 27, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers center Walker Kessler (14) reacts against the Portland Trail Blazers in the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Los Angeles Lakers center Walker Kessler has played in his fourth game with the team, and it's been quite the roller coaster.

His first two games as a Laker were to behold. Kessler dominated on the offensive end; however, his defense fell short of his standards.

Walker Kessler Takes Accountability After Lakers’ Defensive Collapse

The last two games haven't been the best for Kessler, and that goes both ways. His play has been underwhelming lately, especially on the defensive end and on the boards.

The 25-year-old has been shaky, and after Tuesday's loss, Kessler took ownership of the team's defensive struggles, calling it 'not acceptable.'

"We definitely gotta be better and I gotta personally be a lot better on the defensive side," Kessler said.

"I pride myself on being the leader on the defense and I didn't perform tonight. But we'll figure it out. It's a quick turnaround. [We] literally have a game in less than 24 hours. But it's a good learning point because our offense looks good. [We're] scoring almost 130 points. It was pretty efficient, but we shouldn't have lost scoring 130. Giving up 100 in the 140s is not acceptable. We'll figure it out."

The Lakers' offense has been stellar, keeping them in the contest against the Blazers. However, their defense has been below average, and that was certainly the case against Portland.

Kessler's play certainly didn't help. In 33 minutes of action, he recorded 13 points, eight rebounds and two blocks while shooting 66.7% from the field.

Walker Kessler Calls Himself Out Over Early Rebounding Struggles

While his numbers were solid, Kessler was outplayed and outhustled by the Blazers ' bigs, Donovan Clingan and Robert Williams III. At times, either Clingan or Williams got the best of him.

Kessler's 8-rebound average so far is far below his career average. If he remains around that average (which would be disappointing), it would be his season-low.

His performance on the boards needs to be better, and that played a role in the Lakers getting outrebounded, 38-31.

"Personally, I gotta do a better job of pursuing the ball [and] being more aggressive to attack the ball, Kessler said.

"I started to figure out a little, or not figure it out, but get it back a little bit and I in the second half, I gotta start that way and be aggressive pursuing the ball. But we'll figure it out.”

Kessler's rebounding numbers aren't a major concern just four games into the season, but that will need to change quickly before it becomes a real problem.

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