Building blocks
Brandon Ingram SF |
Julius Randle PF |
Lonzo Ball PG |
Draft Picks
Lonzo Ball PG
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Kyle Kuzma SF/PF
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Josh Hart SG
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Thomas Bryant PF/C
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Draft Board
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The Lakers are coming off another disappointing season as they finished with a 26-56 record. They seemed to be on the edge of losing their pick again, but managed to jump up to the #2 spot in a loaded draft. They took the best player on the board in Lonzo Ball and managed to acquire more picks through trades with the Nets and Jazz. With those picks they selected Kyle Kuzma, Josh Hart, and Thomas Bryant. Ball will bring excitement to the team and players like Hart and Bryant may contribute immediately. Kuzma was the only head scratching pick at #27, but he does have the tools to become a solid versatile player. In a surprising trade they dealt D'Angelo Russell along with Timofey Mozgov to the Nets for Brook Lopez and the 27th pick. It's tough to sell this low on Russell, but the deal frees up cap space to chase upcoming free agents like Paul George and Lebron James in 2018. Overall the Lakers have put together a solid young core and finally have a direction under Magic Johnson.
Draft Grade: A- Team Needs
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Estimated Cap Space
$10,970,253 UFA Nick Young SF, Tyler Ennis PG, Metta World Peace SF, Thomas Robinson PF RFA None |