Mock draft roundup: Last minute updates on Lakers first round pick
Every draft has diamonds in the rough and the Lakers will be digging for treasure with the No. 17 pick in Wednesday’s NBA Draft
With the 2024 NBA Draft just hours away, the Lakers still have the No. 17 pick and, barring a trade, will be making a selection.
The question we’ve been wondering is, who will the Lakers draft in the first round?
Let’s look at some mock drafts around the internet and see who the experts think will become a Laker by the end of the day on Wednesday.
DraftExpress — Tristan Da Silva, wing, Colorado
Every NBA team could use a quality wing and the Lakers are no different. Jonathan Givony gave his analysis of Da Silva, which you can read below.
Should the Lakers elect to stand pat, picking a plug-and-play wing/forward such as Da Silva would make lots of sense. He has excellent size at 6-foot-10. He made 40% of his 3-pointers. And he brings a strong feel for the game, unselfishness and competitiveness on both ends of the floor.Da Silva should be ready to play fairly soon for a team that is hoping to take a step forward. Yves Missi, McCain, Holland, Carrington, Shannon and Edey are some of the names rival teams have suggested might be in play here, as well.
The Athletic — Zach Edey, big, Purdue
Edey has worked out for the Lakers and, according to The Atheltic’s mock draft, he is the expected pick if available.
Here’s what Sam Vecenie had to say about the Boilermaker.
Edey was one of the best post players in recent college basketball history. He averaged 14.3 points per game on the block; the second-best mark in the country was 8.6 points per game. He was efficient with that high volume, scoring at a 1.05 point-per-possession rate on the block, per Synergy, which ranked 20th out of 105 players with at least 120 post-ups. Even at the NBA level, Edey should be able to establish his position whenever he wants.
The Ringer — Kel’el Ware, big, Indiana
Another mock draft, another big the Lakers are in the mix for. This time, he’s from Indiana University.
Could the Lakers be adding another Hoosier to the roster? Jalen Hood-Schifino was drafted last year at No. 17, so it certainly would make for a good story if the Lakers run it back and drafted another player from Indiana at the same spot.
Here is Kevin O’Connor’s report on Ware.
Ware could be a rookie lob threat and rim protector in the mold of Dereck Lively II of the Mavericks. But if Ware’s 3-pointer translates as well as it did during his sophomore year at Indiana, he could bring another dimension. Then again, the Lakers picked a Hoosier at no. 17 last year—and that hasn’t gone too well.
CBS Sports — Da Silva, wing, Colorado
Count Adam Finkelstein of CBS Sports as another person who like Da Silva as a Laker on draft night. Here is his analysis of why he fits in Los Angeles.
Da Silva is arguably the best plug-and-play option on the board and with LeBron likely to opt out only to resign, that means the Lakers appear trapped in this purgatory of trying to compete, even when they don’t seem to have the assets to do it over the course of a long NBA season.
Bleacher Report — Edey, big, Purdue
If Edey is available at No. 17 Jonathan Wasserman can see the Lakers adding him to their roster. Read his breakdown below.
Rival teams believe Zach Edey could go in the lottery. While there are still skeptics, it also sounds like some teams will be willing to take a chance that 7’4” size, improved mobility and inside touch could translate to effective offensive rebounding, post scoring, rim protection and adequate enough defensive foot speed in space.
Yahoo Sports — Kyshawn George, guard, Miami
The guard from Miami has tremendous upside but is a bit of an experiment as a one-and-done player. Here’s a report on the soon-to-be rookie from Krysten Peek.
George averaged only 7.6 points during his one year at Miami, but shot 41% from 3-point range. Originally from Switzerland, the sharp-shooting wing shot up four inches two years ago and sees the floor like a point guard with how well he passes and how quick he makes decisions off the dribble.
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