The NBA held a drawing to break ties between six teams with identical 2020-21 regular-season records for the 2021 NBA Draft which resulted in the Los Angeles Lakers being awarded the No. 22 overall pick.
The Lakers finished in a three-way tie with the Dallas Mavericks and Portland Trail Blazers as each team finished with a 42-30 record. Dallas would end up winning the original tiebreaker, with second and third place going to Los Angeles and Portland respectively.
As far as the results for the other tiebreakers, the Oklahoma City Thunder were the big winners as they won over the Cleveland Cavaliers which means they can fall no farther than No. 8 in the Draft Lottery. The Chicago Bulls won a three-way tie with the New Orleans Pelicans and Sacramento Kings, with the Pelicans and Kings taking second and third.
In recent years, the Lakers scouting department has proved adept at finding talent in the latter part of the first round and well into the second round. This upcoming class is considered to be one of the stronger ones in recent years and it is widely expected there will be good prospects to be had throughout the draft.
Los Angeles previously found gems at No. 27 when they took Larry Nance Jr. in 2015 and Kyle Kuzma in 2017. The Lakers also found another solid role player in Josh Hart No. 30, and later took Moritz Wagner at No. 25, who showed flashes in his one year with the team.
The Purple and Gold actually held the No. 28 selection in the 2020 NBA Draft but traded it alongside Danny Green to the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for Dennis Schroder. It stands to reason that the team will actually look to select someone this year given their lack of draft capital going forward and it will be interesting to see who they pick when the draft takes place on July 29.
Type of prospect Lakers should consider drafting
The Lakers struck gold after selecting Talen Horton-Tucker No. 46 overall in the 2019 NBA Draft, but this time around they should look hard at a 3-and-D prospect to develop. Los Angeles will likely prioritize signing Horton-Tucker, Alex Caruso and Dennis Schroder in the offseason which would address their guard rotation.
With the backcourt settled, filling out the roster with a wing would be the best move especially when considering 3-and-D players are always in high demand.
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Los Angeles Lakers(96) - Minnesota Timberwolves(103)
