After a disappointing season, the Los Angeles Lakers finished the year with a 37-45 record. They found themselves having the 11th-best odds (2% chance) of having the number one pick in the upcoming draft. Surprisingly, the Lakers’ pick moved all the way up to the fourth spot. This is huge because it gives them a few options to choose from. The 2019 Lakers draft options at fourth are great.
The possible 2019 Lakers draft options are ranked from best to worst.
Trade For Anthony Davis
I understand that the Lakers failed to acquire Anthony Davis from New Orleans at the trade deadline. However, I believe that the best option for the Lakers is to re-open the trade talks.
According to Shams, AD’s stance on being traded still hasn’t changed despite the Pelicans now having the first overall pick in the draft. This is great for LA because AD still wants out, and now they have a high-value draft pick.
A potential trade package could be:
Pick #4, Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram or Kyle Kuzma, a 2021 First-Rounder, Pick #39 and/or Josh Hart for Anthony Davis
This trade benefits both parties. For the Lakers, they’ll receive a top-10 player in AD to pair with LeBron James. If James and Davis team up, they’ll be a scary duo in the West. The Brow would bring a big-time presence in the paint for the Lakers and sweet pick-and-roll action with Bron.
With most of the Lakers load on LBJ, I think that Davis’ injury history shouldn’t be a concern. Also, a backcourt in the big market of LA consisting of Davis, James, and Kuzma/Ingram could definitely attract an All-Star in free agency. If a nice player such as Kyrie Irving, Klay Thompson, or Jimmy Butler can form a “Big 3” in Tinseltown, the Lakers would automatically be a title contender.
The trade also benefits the Pelicans as well. They’ll receive a top prospect in this year’s draft, two or three solid young players who have many years ahead of them to get even better, a future first rounder, and a high second rounder this year that can be used to draft a role player. These pieces from this trade (and Zion) will make their rebuild go a lot faster. All NOP has to give up is a player who doesn’t want to suit up for them anymore and is approaching the final year on his contract.
Trade Down – Draft Bol Bol
Now, an interesting idea suggested by PerSources’ own Aiden Hawkins is that the Lakers should explore using the fourth pick to trade down for multiple picks. They should trade down in the draft if the Pelicans aren’t budging.
In my opinion, if the Lakers are going to draft a player instead of trading the pick for AD, then they select a player who can help fix one of their biggest needs – a young big man who can space the floor.
The Lakers built a brick house from downtown last season. They connected on a third of their 3PTs (second-worst in the league). The Lakers need to draft a guy who can open up the court for them. That guy also needs to be a big man because the Lakers’ notable bigs are veteran free agents. Tyson Chandler (age 36) and JaVale McGee (age 31) aren’t true starters who obviously can’t space the floor. They shouldn’t be starting if this organization wants to bounce back from a humiliating season.
That’s why the Lakers should select Bol Bol. Even though he played only nine games in college due to a season-ending foot injury, the Lakers can’t pass on Bol because his skill-set makes him the ideal center for a LeBron-led team.
When healthy, Bol is a lengthy beast. In his short but productive career for the Oregon Ducks, Bol averaged 21 PPG on an insanely efficient 56% from the field and 52% from beyond the arch. Bol is also an elite rim protector due to his 7’7″ height and 8′ wingspan. He racked up 9.6 rebounds, 2.7 blocks, and a steal last season.
Sitting at pick #4, the Lakers could take Bol right away. However, Bol isn’t projected to be drafted until the tail-end of the lottery. That’s why the Lakers should trade down and get more value out of the pick if they want to draft Bol. LA doesn’t have to worry about Bol being taken off the board before their pick because I believe that, due to his health, he’ll receive the same treatment as Michael Porter Jr. by falling to the end of the lotto.
If the Lakers want to trade down, their most realistic trade partner would be Boston.
A possible trade package could be:
Pick #4 for Pick #14 (via. Sacramento), Pick #20 (via. LAC), and Pick #22.
If they trade with Boston, LA would now select towards the end of the lottery to get Bol. Also, they’d receive a few late first-round picks to draft good-value players such as Tyler Herro and P.J. Washington to add to their bench depth.
Boston would look to use the fourth pick to select Vanderbilt’s Darius Garland to be the replacement for Kyrie Irving who’d most likely take his talents somewhere else this offseason. Or, Boston could use their newly acquired top pick as a trade piece to better their chances at trading for AD if they want to go that route since the Lakers, most likely, would no longer be in the AD sweepstakes.
Draft At #4
If the Lakers somehow can’t or don’t want to move the pick for more value, they, of course, can draft a player at that position. They’d most likely take a guard if they’re drafting fourth because no big men are projected to be selected that high. Also, the Lakers have plenty of forwards on their team so, it wouldn’t make sense to draft one so high.
In that case, the Lakers best option is G Darius Garland. Last season, the Lakers lacked consistent shot creation coming from their guards. Garland is a guy who can get his own shot and hit them at a high percentage. In his time with the Commodores, the dangerous scorer averaged 16.2 PPG on 47.8% from the field and 53.7% from 3PT land. He’s not the best playmaker, but it doesn’t matter that much because the Lakers have LeBron and Lonzo Ball to do the playmaking for the team.
Garland only played five games last season due to a season-ending meniscus injury in his left knee last November. His small college resume makes him a bit of an unknown prospect, at least to me. However, if the Lakers want to draft a player at the fourth spot, then Garland is their guy.
Final Thoughts
The Lakers have some work to do this offseason to make up for their embarrassing 2018-19 season. Luckily for them, they got a nice jump last Tuesday by getting the fourth pick in the upcoming draft while projected to have the eleventh pick. There are many options that the Lakers can decide on what to do with the draft pick. I only listed three. All in all, what the Lakers decide to do with their draft selection will have an impact on whether or not they are title contenders in the next few years.
Disagree with my take? Feel free to hit me up on Twitter @stevenpepper38 or Instagram @stevenpepper_.