The Los Angeles Lakers only have a few more weeks left before they have to decide on which player they’ll be taking in the 2017 NBA Draft. All signs point to the team selecting Lonzo Ball out of UCLA at No. 2 if he’s still on the board, but a report recently surfaced about Los Angeles passing on the former Bruins star.
Apparently, there are quite a few NBA executives around the league that aren’t buying into the Lakers passing on Ball, according to Adam Zagoria of Zagsblog.com:
Meantime, several NBA executives told ZAGSBLOG they don’t buy an Internet report that the Lakers will pass on Ball, who is slated to work out for them on Wednesday.
Although there will be a lot of talented prospects available once the Lakers are on the clock at No. 2, Ball seems to be the ideal fit. The 19-year-old provides everything the Lakers need in the backcourt as a true point guard with a pass-first mentality and an ability to stretch the floor.
If the Lakers bring in Ball, the team could shift D’Angelo Russell to a seemingly more natural position at shooting guard while having Jordan Clarkson come off the bench. Ball makes the most sense for Los Angeles, but anything can happen that could change that, especially if he fails to impress during his individual workout with the team on Wednesday.
Other potential options for the Lakers at No. 2 overall include De’Aaron Fox (Kentucky), Jayson Tatum (Duke), and Josh Jackson (Kansas). The Boston Celtics will meet with Markelle Fultz (Washington) for two days this week with all indications being that they’ll take him at No. 1 leaving the Lakers to choose between Ball, Fox, Tatum, and Jackson.