Lakers Rumors: Bold predictions for the Lakers offseason
By Jason Reed
The Lakers will NOT draft Lonzo Ball
Lonzo Ball has been tied to the Los Angeles Lakers even before he stepped foot on the court as a member of the UCLA Bruins. Being a home town kid with some great talent, Ball has seemed to be that spark that the Lakers need on their team. Heck, even his outlandish father, Lavar, stated that Ball would have the same impact on the Lakers as Magic Johnson.
It is no surprise that Ball and his father want to head to the Staples Center next season. However, despite the reported interest from Magic Johnson himself, we won’t see Ball donning the purple and gold next season.
Perhaps the foundation for this entire prediction is Lavar himself. While it is absolutely ridiculous to pass on a high caliber player because of his dad, this case is different. Especially after the D’Angelo Russell, Nick Young fiasco in early 2016, the Lakers need to try to avoid any outside distractions for their young core.
Plus, this draft is immensely deep that the Lakers do not need to draft Ball. The team is already perfectly fine at point guard, having two options in Jordan Clarkson and Russell. Ball would just be icing on the cake, they do not need him. Instead, they can turn their focus to Josh Jackson, running him at the shooting guard like the Thunder did early in Kevin Durant’s career.
Whatever the true motives are behind this decision, if the Lakers maintain their first round pick, they will not draft Lonzo Ball.