Silver Screen and Roll
Silver Screen and Roll • • sports
Key Points:
- The Lakers attempted to acquire restricted free agent Jarace Kessler, who was seeking a significant salary increase compared to his previous rookie contract under $3 million.
- The Utah Jazz chose to prioritize building around their No. 2 draft pick, Darryn Peterson, and leveraging multiple draft assets from the Lakers rather than overpaying Kessler long-term.
- Utah offered Kessler a five-year, $140 million extension averaging $28 million annually, while the Lakers proposed a four-year, $130 million deal averaging $32.5 million per year.
- To pursue Kessler, the Lakers traded unprotected future first-round picks in 2031 and 2033, along with pick swaps in 2028 and 2030, to Utah in the deal.
