An important summer is approaching for the Los Angeles Lakers and the first step is the NBA Draft, which is a way to add inexpensive talent. L.A. has struggled in recent years with missed draft picks in Dalton Knecht and Jalen Hood-Schifino, and they will look to get back on track in 2026.
L.A. holds the No. 25 pick in this year’s draft, and it remains to be seen whether they will keep or trade it. At this point, they are doing their due diligence and have worked out a vast number of prospects, via HoopsHype:
#31 Zuby Ejiofor (PF, St. John’s, 22-39) #32, Alex Karaban (SF, UConn, 23-199) #36, Baba Miller (PF, Cincinnati, 22-112) #63, Peter Suder (SG, Miami (OH), 23-120) #65, Rafael Castro (C, George Washington, 22-365) #67, Jaden Henley (SF, Grand Canyon, 22-35) UNR, Sam Alexis (PF, Indiana, 21-227) UNR, Drake Allen (PG, Utah St, 25-36) UNR, Duke Brennan (C, Villanova, 23-53) UNR, Keba Keita (C, BYU, 22-283) UNR, Malachi Moreno (C, Kentucky, 19-217) UNR, Mike Sharavjamts (PG, South Carolina, 23-275) UNR, Marquel Sutton (PF, LSU, 23-138) UNR, Mohamed Wague (C, Oklahoma, 26-164)
Obviously, the Lakers have brought in a lot of different prospects for workouts, but a common theme is frontcourt players. Finding more forwards and another center are two needs for L.A. this offseason and drafting one would be one way to do that.
A notable name from this group is Alex Karaban, who won two national championships with the UConn Huskies. He can knock down 3-pointers at a high volume and has a similar play style to Rui Hachimura.
If Los Angeles decides to go center at No. 25, finding an athletic two-way lob threat could be beneficial for Luka Doncic and company. In what is deemed to be a deep draft class, hopefully the assistance of former Virginia coach Tony Bennett as a draft adviser can help the Lakers find a steal after their recent misses.
Derek Fisher believes Luka Doncic can lead Lakers to championship
At 27-years-old, Doncic looks to get back to the NBA Finals after getting his first appearance in 2024. Now that he is representing the Lakers, it is always a goa to get back to the mountaintop.
In his first full season in Los Angeles, Doncic put up MVP-type numbers and appeared poised to make a postseason run. Unfortunately, injuries prevented him from participating and now L.A. needs to regroup.
With an important offseason ahead to try and retool a roster to better suit Doncic, former Lakers guard Derek Fisher remains hopeful that the newest Lakers star can lead the franchise to a title after last winning in 2020.
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