Now that the Los Angeles Lakers own the second overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft, most believe the team has an easy decision in taking whichever of the top two prospects the Philadelphia 76ers don’t draft first overall. Those two players, as many know, are LSU’s Ben Simmons and Duke’s Brandon Ingram.
There have been plenty of rumors about which player the Lakers prefer to fall to them, but nothing is for certain until Los Angeles brings in those players for personal workouts.
Those workouts are still a ways away, however, as the team will not workout top prospects until next week at the earliest, according to Mike Bresnahan of the LA Times:
Lakers not planning to work out players for second overall pick until middle of next week, at the earliest. #ingram #simmons
— Mike Bresnahan (@Mike_Bresnahan) May 24, 2016
Simmons and Ingram are the obvious guys that everyone is looking forward to seeing, and arguments have already begun about which player fans want to see in a Lakers jersey next year.
Simmons is believed to have the higher ceiling, and his passing and ball-handling for his size have drawn comparisons to LeBron James. Ingram is an outstanding shooter and overall offensive player who many liken to Kevin Durant. In all likelihood, those won’t be the only players the Lakers will work out.
Players like Dragan Bender, Kris Dunn, Buddy Hield, and Jaylen Brown could all be brought in so the Lakers can get an up-close look at them. Even though they may not be considered for the second overall pick, the Lakers could always make a trade and find themselves in a different draft position.
The good news for the Lakers is that with Brian Shaw in place as Luke Walton’s lead assistant, they will now have someone there to witness the workouts in case Walton is still busy finishing up his responsibilities for the Golden State Warriors.