The new-look Los Angeles Lakers are still in the middle of their offseason, doing individual preparation for the highly-anticipated 2023-24 campaign. Among the new Lakers is young center Jaxson Hayes, who is preparing for his fresh start after spending four seasons as a New Orleans Pelicans lottery pick.
Hayes was the eighth overall selection in 2019, a draft pick the Pelicans received by trading away the fourth overall pick they landed via the Lakers in the Anthony Davis trade. Now, Hayes will play behind — and potentially alongside — Davis in purple and gold.
Before he did that, though, Hayes got the chance to share the court with a different sport’s star in Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba. The two did a jersey swap and even recorded a short highlight at the Lakers practice facility:
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) July 27, 2023
Pogba dropped in a perfect alley-oop off the backboard to Hayes, who slammed it down with ease. Pogba was able to do this with Juventus in L.A. for a friendly against AC Milan at Dignity Health Sports Park — home of the L.A. Galaxy — on Thursday night.
It’s part of a series of European soccer teams — like Arsenal and FC Barcelona — playing friendlies in Los Angeles this week. And Pogba was one of the biggest stars in attendance. It stands to reason he’d spend some time at the Lakers facility.
The Lakers have always been a draw for celebrities in other sports to make an appearance, and even in European soccer that rings true.
Charles Barkley calls Lakers a surprise team
The Lakers have legitimate championship aspirations as they head into the 2023-24 campaign for the first time in three seasons when they were the defending NBA champions. Behind LeBron James and Anthony Davis and a strong core of role players, the Lakers could very well be in the the conversation when the postseason begins.
Charles Barkley, known for his public criticism of the Lakers, seems to be in agreement with this assessment of L.A. He called the Lakers a surprise team that could contend for a championship after improving this offseason.
He did say that it was too early to make any official predictions for the season, but lumped in teams like the Lakers and Boston Celtics as surprise teams that could make some noise this upcoming campaign. Let’s see if his optimism ends up being well-placed for this exciting Lakers team.
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