The Los Angeles Lakers received some good news at the 2019 NBA Draft Lottery when the ping pong balls fell their way and they moved up from No. 11 to secure the No. 4 pick.
Moving up gives the Lakers a lot more options to add to their young core among the projected lottery picks and one prospect could be Cam Reddish.
The 2019 NBA Draft Combine is underway and according to Tania Ganguli of Los Angeles Times, Reddish revealed he has already met with the Lakers in Chicago:
Cam Reddish has met with the Lakers already. I asked who was in the meeting and he said “everybody, you name it” https://t.co/gy0UlruWJr
— Tania Ganguli (@taniaganguli) May 16, 2019
Reddish had an up-and-down year in his lone season at Duke, averaging 13.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 1.6 steals while shooting 35.6% from the field, 33% from the three-point line and 77.2% from the free-throw line.
Despite the inconsistency, Reddish was a top-three college recruit going into last season, so he is still projected by many draft experts to be taken in the lottery. It appears that falls in line with what Reddish is being told by teams at the combine as according to Cody Westerlund of 670TheScore.com, Reddish said he expects to go in the No. 3-10 range:
Upon further review, Cam Reddish said he has received feedback that he will go in 3-10 range. I apologize for my poor hearing. He has met with the #Bulls, who own the No. 7 pick.
— Cody Westerlund (@CodyWesterlund) May 16, 2019
Most of the mock drafts since the lottery have projected the Lakers to take either Jarrett Culver or Darius Garland with the No. 4 pick, but it would not be all that surprising to see Reddish’s name enter the mix if he does well at the combine and a potential private workout with the Lakers.
Reddish measured in at 6’8″ with shoes, 208 pounds, 7’0 1/2 wingspan, 8’9 1/2 standing reach and 4.7% body fat at the combine, which may have raised his stock a bit in the mind of some teams.
It would be hard for the Lakers to justify taking Reddish as high as fourth though considering how poorly he shot at Duke and the other options that will be available to them like Culver and Garland.
The one thing that currently is for sure about the team’s pick is that no one knows what they will do with it, not only in regards to what player they will select, but also if they will even pick a player at all. It’s no secret that Los Angeles wants a second All-Star player to pair with LeBron James, and they could use the pick to help facilitate that.