An important week in the life and career of NBA center Walker Kessler became even more special over the weekend.
Just days after Kessler signed a four-year, $130million contract to play with the Los Angeles Lakers, it was revealed that he and his longtime girlfriend – Abbie Stockard – got engaged during the holiday break.
Photos were posted to an Instagram Story with Stockard showing off the diamond ring that Kessler slipped on her finger.
A caption on the photo read, ‘The future Kessler’s. Let’s get y’all married!!!’
Stockard was left glowing on her Instagram account as she shared the news with her followers.
‘The greatest surprise!! We’re getting married!!,’ she captioned alongside a gallery of images of herself and her now-fiancée.
New Los Angeles Lakers star Walker Kessler is engaged to longtime girlfriend, Abbie Stockard
Stockard shared the news, saying, ‘There’s no one else I’d rather spend the rest of my life with’
Stockard was named Miss America 2025 after winning the Miss Alabama pageant in 2024
‘I get to marry Walker Kessler – my best friend! Our story is truly one that only the Lord could have written.
‘So many things I once thought were coincidences were really His perfect plan unfolding, and our story is greater than anything I could have imagined.
‘There’s no one else I’d rather spend the rest of my life with, doing life together and cheering each other on!
‘I’m so excited for all the big things God has in store for us and the adventure ahead, wherever He might lead us. Best Fourth of July EVER.’
Stockard is a beauty pageant contestant who was crowned Miss Alabama 2024 before going on to win the Miss America 2025 pageant.
Stockard, a native of Birmingham, Alabama, attended Auburn University and met Kessler there while he was a sophomore on the Auburn Tigers’ basketball team. She attended the school as a nursing major and has plans to specialize in pediatric medicine.
Stockard won the Miss Alabama pageant in June of 2024 and became the fourth woman from the Yellowhammer State to be crowned Miss America.
Kessler was left speechless as the former Utah Jazz star admitted, ‘Dating Miss America was not on my bingo card.’
The couple met in college while they were both attending Auburn University
Stockard became the fourth woman from Alabama to win the popular beauty pageant
Days before the engagement, Kessler signed an $130m deal with the Los Angeles Lakers
He is set to form a new ‘Big Three’ in LA with Luka Doncic (77) and Austin Reaves (15)
By that time, he had been in the NBA for three seasons as a member of the Jazz thanks to a post-draft trade.
Initially selected by the Memphis Grizzlies, Kessler was flipped to the Minnesota Timberwolves before then being packaged in a mega-deal to Utah weeks later for Rudy Gobert.
Since then, Kessler has become a reliable paint presence and has averaged 9.5 points, 9.3 rebounds and 2.4 blocks per game in his NBA career. He finished third in the voting for Rookie of the Year, losing out to Orlando Magic star Paolo Banchero.
In the offseason, his contract expired. In a market where centers were at a premium for NBA teams, Kessler earned himself a major pay-day and is set to be the second member of a ‘Big Three’ with the Lakers alongside Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves.
The Lakers are going through a transition after LeBron James announced his departure for a new team yet-to-be-determined this offseason.
