Who Is The Lakers’ Newest Pickup, Kylor Kelley?

An Unexpected College Journey

The 28-year-old seven-footer started his college career at Northwest Christian University, now known as Bushnell University. As a freshman, he averaged 8.6 points, 8.8 rebounds and a whopping 5.6 blocks per game, but an eligibility issue cut his season short.

After 10 games, the university deemed Kelley academically ineligible and he missed the rest of the season.

At the conclusion of the year, Kelley transferred to Lane Community College. Kelley played just 19 games at Lane due to a stress fracture, but that didn’t stop him from turning heads.

As a sophomore, Kelley led the Northwest Atlantic Conference with 4.6 blocks per game and higher major Division I schools took notice.

After multiple west coast teams recruited him, Kelly chose to finish his college career as an Oregon State Beaver.

Despite playing in a more competitive scene, Kelly’s production did not falter. In the 2018-19 season, Kelley started 25 games and averaged 7.7 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.4 blocks per game.

The following year, his scoring output increased by almost four points per game while still providing solid rebounding and elite rim protection. 

Professional Career

Kelley went undrafted in the 2020 NBA Draft but ended up signing an Exhibit 10 deal with the San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs waived him after training camp, and in 2021, Kelley signed with the London Lions of the British Basketball League.

From this point on, Kelley would spend his career bouncing back and forth from the G League to various leagues overseas. But in 2024, he made some considerable noise.

While playing for the Maine Celtics, Kelley earned a spot on the G League All-Defensive Team, leading the league in blocks per game.

At the start of the 2024-25 season, he signed another Exhibit 10 deal with the Los Angeles Lakers but would spend the season with their G League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers.

Kelley would further bounce around the league during the course of last season, eventually getting the call up to the NBA, appearing in 11 games between the Dallas Mavericks and New Orleans Pelicans. He averaged just 11.5 minutes per game in those contests, but his NBA dream was realized.

The defensive-minded big man is back and looking to make a name for himself.