Leading into the NBA Draft, much of the talk surrounding the Los Angeles Lakers has been about the second overall pick. With Lonzo Ball, De’Aaron Fox, and Josh Jackson all possibilities, there will be many questions until that pick is made.
The Lakers haven’t brought in any of the top prospects just yet, but they have brought in a number of players who could be potential options with their other first-round pick, the 28th overall selection. One of the more intriguing players who could be available is Michigan big man D.J. Wilson.
According to ESPN’s Chad Ford (Insider) the Lakers are supposedly high on the Michigan big man:
The Lakers are said to be high on this high-flying stretch-4.
When Wilson isn’t boarding above the rim or launching 3s, there isn’t a lot to his game, but those two attributes can get a player into the first round.
As Ford noted, Wilson is a very good athlete who rebounds well, can stretch the floor out to 3-point range, and has shown flashes of being able to protect the rim. He is also a good ball-handler for a big man. Quite simply there aren’t many bigs who have his combination of skills.
Concerns for Wilson involve a lack of toughness and interior presence on both offense and defense. He can lose focus at times and could stand to improve his passing. Nonetheless it isn’t hard to see why the Lakers would be intrigued by him.
Having athletic big men who can switch out on defense and keep up with guards is huge in today’s NBA. The fact that Wilson can also stretch the floor on offense is arguably even more important as the Lakers don’t have any bigs on their roster capable of that.
It’s impossible to know who will be available when the Lakers finally make their selection at number 28, but someone like Wilson could make a lot of sense.
