NBA Free Agency 2026: The Walker Kessler Dilemma + Jusuf Nurkic Back

<p>The 2026 NBA Offseason is off to a truly wild start with LeBron James departing the Los Angeles Lakers and Kawhi Leonard inexplicably returning to Toronto. But we in Jazzland are on incredibly high alert as LeBron&#39;s departure opens up a cavern of cap space in Los Angeles, who are in the driver&#39;s seat to drive up Walker Kessler&#39;s free agency price.</p><p>Mark Russell Pereira (<a href="https://bsky.app/profile/jazzmanmark.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferer">@jazzmanmark.com</a>) goes long on the entire Walker Kessler saga to date. The team has been entirely cold, calculated, and logical to date. But was there a point where Utah should have been far...less logical? </p><p>Hindsight is 20/20, but the hearts are aching now that a huge Kessler contract is either going to cripple the Jazz&#39; roster plans to build a contender, or he&#39;ll be playing in the hated purple &amp; gold.</p><p>The Jazz also brought back Jusuf Nurkic! He&#39;s a good fit for what the Jazz need right now, and Mark breaks down his salary structure and role on the team. Also, Tamar Bates!</p><p>#walkerkessler #jalenduren #lakers #lakersnation #utahjazz #jazznation #nba #basketball #nbaoffseason #nbadraft </p>