The Utah Jazz might finally be on the rise heading into the fifth year of their rebuild. They selected Darryn Peterson with the second overall pick of the 2026 NBA Draft, and this could be a huge get considering how Peterson was in contention to go first overall all season long. Peterson is joining an increasingly stacked Jazz core that might be ready to take the next step considering how they traded for Jaren Jackson Jr. a few months ago.
This, however, could have repercussions on the Los Angeles Lakers’ pursuit of a center who can plug that hole for the long haul. As Lakers insider Anthony Irwin made note of, the Jazz’s selection of Peterson, another guard, could mean that they would soon deem Walker Kessler untouchable, much to LA’s chagrin.
“Darryn Peterson going to Utah dumps a big bucket of cold water on any dreams of landing Kessler. Just speculating on that, though,” Irwin posted on X.
It’s not quite clear how the Jazz rotation will settle heading into the 2026-27 season. But had Utah selected Cameron Boozer with the second overall selection, perhaps a case could have been made to pair him with Jackson in the frontcourt (with Lauri Markkanen at the three), leaving Kessler more expendable.
However, with Peterson now in town, Kessler becomes that much more valuable, as Jackson has shown over the years that his best position is at the four. This, again, is all speculation, but one would think that one of Peterson and Ace Bailey will have to come off the bench — with Utah deploying their core four of Jackson, Markkanen, Keyonte George, and Kessler, at least to begin the new campaign.
It was already unlikely for the Jazz to let Kessler go in the first place. He’s only 25, and he’s already been one of the best shot-blockers in the NBA this past season. The selection of Peterson has only made him that much more important to the team considering positional need, which means that the Lakers may have to look elsewhere to fill their big man need.
The post NBA rumors: Why Lakers insider is so bummed out about Darryn Peterson to Jazz appeared first on ClutchPoints.
