With the NBA Draft quickly approaching, the time has come for the Los Angeles Lakers to begin working out different players who could potentially be the team’s pick in June. The Lakers currently have their second-round pick, number 32 overall, while the status of their first round pick will be decided on the NBA Draft Lottery on May 17 where the Lakers will lose their pick if it is outside of the top-three.
The unknown status of their first-round pick will not stop them from doing their homework on as many draft prospects as possible, and one who the Lakers will get to see up close and personal is massive UC Irvine center Mamadou Ndiaye.
According to ESPN’s Jeff Goodman, Ndiaye has a workout set up with the Lakers:
UC Irvine 7-foot-5 junior Mamadou N’Diaye has workouts set up with Houston and also the Lakers.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanESPN) May 9, 2016
Ndiaye is a huge player, with some listing him at 7-foot-6 and 300 pounds. His basketball skills, however, are still in development. While he was able to be a difference-maker at UC Irvine, he will need to improve greatly to make an impact at the NBA level. His conditioning and lateral quickness are also worries.
Nonetheless, Ndiaye’s size is something that can’t be taught, and it will get him looks from NBA teams, though it is still a question mark as to whether he will be drafted. Draftexpress.com ranks Ndiaye as their 30th best junior prospect. Ndiaye has not yet hired an agent, so he can choose to return to UC Irvine if he withdraws from the draft by June 13.
In 35 games as a junior, Ndiaye averaged 12.1 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 2.4 blocks in 23.2 minutes.