Lakers should look into drafting UCLA star Aaron Holiday in the first round
By Keith Rivas
What’s their realistic back up plan at shooting guard?
With Kentavious Caldwell-Pope having an expiring deal, it wouldn’t be very smart for the Lakers to bring him back when they’ve got young talent that can do the job just as good, if not better. However, the big question mark hanging on Josh Hart at the moment is obviously returning healthy from injury, but also being able to help set the tone where Lonzo Ball falls flat.
The Lakers need a guard with an attitude that Ball doesn’t have. Not the cocky type, but has enough of a fighter in him to stand up for himself on and off the floor and carries himself like a leader. If they can’t get all of that from Josh Hart right away, having Holiday just in case is a smart idea.
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They don’t need to add any forwards through the draft, they’ve done their due diligence there. In terms of having a center, you can either trust Ivica Zubac, Thomas Bryant, or Julius Randle to take care of that if nothing works out in free agency and it’s determined that they’re officially not bringing back Brook Lopez.
Fair competition for Josh Hart is only going to help the young core of the team grow, as well. Without it, he won’t have something to fight for at the two guard, and will likely be stuck going with whatever flow and tempo Ball, Ingram, and Kuzma decide to set on any given night.
The junior from UCLA in Holiday is averaging 20 points per game to go with six assists and four rebounds. For Los Angeles, the key to them really taking a leap next season is finding a scoring guard that can pour on the points while Kuzma and Ingram do their thing and Ball can do his at the point.
They need to know that Ball can fully function as a facilitator, and this gives him more options to work with and can also prove as a test to how he handles new faces after overcoming his own rookie campaign.