The Los Angeles Lakers' splash of the offseason was getting their hands on Walker Kessler. They didn't stop there, as they then added Utah Jazz alum Collin Sexton. With the Lakers, the two former Jazz teammates have the chance to win in LA, but they also have the chance to prove they are a better duo than statistics would suggest.
Kessler and Sexton's net rating as a two-man lineup in Utah never panned out better than average. In fact, over the years, their net rating when paired on the floor together got worse over time.
Their first year as teammates (2022-23), which was also Sexton's first year back after tearing his meniscus, was a minus-0.3, which isn't bad. It's meh. That was as good as it got for them though, as once the Jazz started embracing the tank, it only got worse.
The following season (2023-24), their two-man net rating was minus-4.7 in a season in which Utah was demonstrably worse than the one before. In their third and final season as teammates in Utah (2024-25), the Jazz had embraced the tank in full, which led to their two-man net rating becoming a minus-7.7.
But was that on them or the Jazz themselves?
That's the question. Utah steadily chose to get worse over the three years Kessler and Sexton were teammates. Now that they're with the Lakers, it's going to be an entirely new dynamic. Now they're on a team that's trying to win, especially now that the Jazz own their future going forward.
Now one would think that their two-man net rating as Lakers will get better by virtue of playing for a team with complete opposite intentions. However, keep in mind that despite their individual talents, neither Kessler nor Sexton have played for a playoff team.
They are going to a much more talented team in LA than any of the ones they had in Utah from playing with Luka Doncic alone. Even so, we're only now going to see what they will look like when placed on a team that has the playoffs on their mind.
Odds are, their two-man net rating will look better with the Lakers, but how much better is what many should be asking. Kessler gives the Lakers the defensive infusion they've desperately needed since trading Anthony Davis, but he's only one man. Sexton can score from anywhere, but at best, he's third in the Lakers' pecking order.
No Jazz fan in their right mind would ever root for the Lakers, no matter who is playing for them (not even Karl Malone), but it will be fascinating to see how impactful Kessler and Sexton will be now that they don't have the shackles they once did as Jazzmen.
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