The Los Angeles Lakers parted with a pair of first-round draft picks as well as two additional pick swaps in the first round to land Walker Kessler this offseason. In doing so, they proved that the Phoenix Suns handled the Mark Williams situation perfectly, considering it would have been hard to land a replacement.
Suns would have been without starting big if they didn't extend Williams
Williams' injury woes have been well documented. Yet, Kessler's time with the Utah Jazz was also marked by an inability to stay on the court. As hard as it may be to believe, Kessler, at 25 years old, is over five months older than Williams, so it is not like they got a much younger prospect in the deal.
Kessler is also by far the better player, but looking around the league, if the Suns hadn't brought back Williams on a three-year, $38 million extension, they would be in a world of trouble right now.
They want to contend with Devin Booker, and Williams helps them do it. We are all high on sophomore Khaman Maluach to the point that we could see him take Williams' starting spot in the next 18 months. Still, he is nowhere near ready for that role yet, and Williams was the correct insurance policy at the right price to bridge that gap.
Oso Ighodaro is the other player in their depth chart right now, but he is not a true center and has also had success as a forward. A future tandem of Ighodaro and Maluach could work and save the Suns a ton of money in the process, but we are not close to that point.
Suns didn't have money to attract center in open market
Important to remember is the fact that the Suns are currently over the first apron and had essentially no money to get a center on the open market. A fact that makes their ability to sign Luke Kennard at the price point they managed to pay all the more remarkable.
Bringing Williams back on a deal that was fair to both sides was possible because they already had the player in The Valley, and he is easily movable down the road (assuming he stays healthy). Seeing that the Lakers have stretched themselves thin to land Kessler shows this is smart business.
Both franchises are trying to contend now with their superstars, Luka Doncic and Devin Booker, but it is the Suns who have learned from past mistakes. You have to sacrifice continuity in order to improve when the opportunity arises, but there were no center options available to the Suns, or many other teams in the league, for that matter.
That is why they made the wise decision and the Lakers panicked.
Add us as a preferred source on Google