As one of four expansion teams in the NBA 2K League for the 2019 season, Los Angeles Lakers Gaming announced the selections of three draft picks for their inaugural team.
With their first selection, No. 33 overall (second round), Lakers Gaming drafted shooting guard Kevin “Kev” Alvarado. Power forward Christopher “Detoxys” Doyle was taken with the 44th overall pick in the third round, and shooting guard Shane “Safiya4ya” Farrar was drafted 67th overall in the fourth round.
“We are thrilled. We were able to draft players to complement the skills of our current roster in Mootyy, KontruL and Vert,” Lakers Gaming general manager/head coach Mathew Makovec said. “In each position, we now have experienced and developed skill players.”
The 198 draft-eligible players consisted of 144 new players who were selected by the league following an extensive tryout process, six players from the league’s first-ever APAC Invitational that took place in Hong Kong in early February, and 48 unretained players from the inaugural season.
Knicks Gaming won the first-ever NBA 2K League Finals last August. Each of the league’s 21 teams features six players who compete as unique characters in 5-on-5 play in a mix of regular-season games, in-season tournaments and playoffs.
The Lakers represent the first Los Angeles franchise to enter into the eSports realm with their own team.