Los Angeles Lakers: Draft selections were tailored to LeBron James
By Jason Reed
The Los Angeles Lakers may not have used their draft picks to trade for a star, however, the team did select with a certain star in mind.
The Los Angeles Lakers had a fairly interesting showing in the 2018 NBA Draft. Although the team drafted guys that were not heavily connected to LA prior to the draft, the selections themselves served a bigger purpose.
With the 25th overall pick the Lakers selected power forward/center Moritz Wagner from Michigan. Wagner excels at stretching the floor and shooting the three as well as rebounding. However, Wagner may be a defensive liability and entered the draft with second-round projections.
Twelve picks later the Los Angeles Lakers selected center Isaac Bonga, who likely will not suit up for the team in the coming year or two. Bonga needs work overseas but has the potential to return to LA to play a huge. The front office obviously loved Bonga, as they traded up for this selection to draft and stash him.
With the 47th pick, and the team’s last, the Lakers went with the sharpshooting guard, Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk, out of Kansas. Mykhailiuk averaged 6.6 three-point shots per game while making 44.4 percent of them. He also set the school record for three-point shots made in a single season.
Like Wagner, Mykhailiuk does not thrive defensively, but his strengths obviously lie in making the three ball.
And that is what is so telling about this draft. The Los Angeles Lakers essentially added two depth pieces in Wagner and Mykhailiuk that will serve distinct roles off the bench. Wagner will likely line up as the second unit’s starting center while Mykhailiuk will likely be the back up two guard.
Both are spark plugs that should get things going for the second unit and can come in during crunch time to be potential targets to knock down shots.
These two selections and the two roles that are being filled tailor to LeBron James’ needs perfectly. Throughout his career, James has always needed that spark plug like player to be successful. On the Cavaliers, it was J.R. Smith and Kyle Korver. Before them, it was Ray Allen.
These are not two players that will likely progress into future stars like the current Lakers’ core. Instead, these are two guys that fit very specific roles in a much bigger picture.
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These selections were used to entice LeBron James to the Los Angeles Lakers. Perhaps his mind is already made up and he just gave a slight tip to Magic Johnson who he liked in the draft. It wouldn’t be surprising, considering Rob Pelinka said that Wagner was a big target for Magic himself.