The Los Angeles Lakers have only made one pick so far in this draft: Baylor guard Cameron Carr with the No. 24 pick. After trading up to get Carr, the Lakers were assumed to be done with the draft, as they had no second-round picks this year.
As it turns out, however, the Lakers will be involved tonight after pulling off a trade for the No. 56 pick. According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, they only had to give up cash in exchange.
“The Los Angeles Lakers are acquiring No. 56 from the Chicago Bulls in the second round of the NBA draft tonight at 8 pm ET on ESPN,” wrote Shams on X. “Lakers sent cash to the Bulls to get a pick tonight.”
As a win-now team, the Lakers don’t have much room to develop young players, but that doesn’t mean they want to ignore an opportunity. Fresh off the Austin Reaves extension, which will pay him $185 million over the next four years, they need to stock up on role-players with affordable contracts. Fortunately, there’s hardly anything more affordable than a rookie contract, and that’s why the Lakers want to use the extra pick to add a true difference-maker. The question is, what do they have in mind with their lone second-rounder?
As some fans pointed out, this deal could be a precursor to moving further up in the draft, possibly into the 30s or 40s. If not, there are still some good prospects they can take. Rafael Castro might be the best center available at 56, and he’d make a fine option as a powerful rebounder and consistent lob threat who averaged 15.3 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game this past year.
Some Lakers fans are hoping to see Pelinka draft 7’0″ big man Henri Veesar out of North Carolina. With averages of 17.0 points, 8.7 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.2 blocks per game on 60.8% shooting, he’d make a perfect fit for a Lakers team that needs size and defense. The only problem is that he’s projected to go early in the second round, with some predicting he’ll be the first name called tonight.
Ultimately, there’s no way to tell who will be available that late in the draft, but the Lakers clearly feel they can add a promising young rookie at the spot. While some fans are theorizing Bryce James could be in play, he hasn’t actually declared for the draft this year after being redshirted in his first college season. Even if he had declared, the Lakers have too many needs to spend a roster spot on LeBron’s other son.
Needless to say, the Lakers have some big decisions to make tonight, and what they decide could have major implications on their future. With a mixed draft record, nobody knows what to expect from this team, but they can only afford so many mistakes before Luka Doncic starts to lose trust.
That’s why they took the opportunity to slide into the second round tonight, with the aim of finding a player who can help address some of their biggest flaws. We can’t expect too much from a rookie, but the Lakers know better than any team not to underestimate a late draft pick (or even an undrafted player).
