UPDATE (6:20 PM PT): Lonzo Ball’s workout has been re-scheduled to June 7. Shams Charania of The Vertical was the first to report the change while Tania Ganguli of the L.A. Times reports exactly what caused it:
Update! Magic Johnson had a scheduling conflict, Lonzo's workout was changed to June 7, instead of June 9.
— Tania Ganguli (@taniaganguli) May 31, 2017
On June 22, the Los Angeles Lakers will have a decision to make with the storied franchise having the No. 2 pick in the NBA Draft for the third straight year. Although the team still has a few weeks to weigh pros and cons of the best talent coming out of college level, Lonzo Ball out of UCLA appears to be the favorite to be taken by the Lakers the second overall pick.
According to Shams Charania of The Vertical, Ball has scheduled a workout with the Lakers:
Lonzo Ball will work out for the Los Angeles Lakers on June 9, the first step toward possibly becoming the No. 2 overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft, league sources told The Vertical.
The consensus at this point is Ball and Washington’s Markelle Fultz are the top two prospects in the upcoming draft. Fultz appears to be the favorite to be the top pick and would be headed to the Boston Celtics as a result while all signs point to Ball landing with his hometown Lakers.
Ball’s workout on June 9 could essentially seal the deal for the Lakers in terms of convincing Magic Johnson, Rob Pelinka, and head coach Luke Walton that he’s the right fit for Los Angeles. Johnson and Walton have already sung his praises publicly with an emphasis on the 19-year-old’s passing ability.
It’ll be interesting to see if the narrative changing in Los Angeles following this individual workout and whether Ball remains atop of the Lakers’ draft board or a stronger case is made for other prospects like De’Aaron Fox, Jayson Tatum, and Josh Jackson.