As the NBA Draft inches closer the rumor mill has been heating up, leaving many to wonder what’s real and what isn’t. In the case of the Los Angeles Lakers, who possess the second overall pick, rumors about how serious they are about selecting UCLA’s Lonzo Ball seems to fluctuate by the day.
This makes it tough to get a read on whether the Lakers will draft him or go with another candidate, like Kansas’ Josh Jackson or Kentucky’s De’Aaron Fox, although Jackson appears to be the more likely of the two.
One interesting wrinkle that recently was reported is that Jackson canceled a workout with the Boston Celtics, who possess the first overall pick. This seems a bit strange, but ESPN’s Jeff Goodman broke the news via his Twitter account:
High lottery pick Josh Jackson canceled today's workout with the Boston Celtics, source told me and @MarcJSpearsESPN.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanESPN) June 13, 2017
Jackson canceling his workout fueled some speculation that a team early in the draft had promised to select him, with most assuming that it would be the Lakers with the second pick since he has yet to workout for the Philadelphia 76ers or Phoenix Suns, who have the 3rd and 4th picks, respectively.
That said, it would appear that rumor should be taken with a grain of salt. It’s possible that a team like the Lakers or 76ers have promised to draft him, but unlikely, because most teams are still gathering information and not yet ready to make a decision.
It’s possible that Jackson simply doesn’t think it’s probable that Boston will draft him since they appear to be locked in on Markelle Fultz, and doesn’t want to waste his time. Additionally, he could feel that Boston simply isn’t a good fit for him, with minutes being tough to come by due to the presence of Avery Bradley, Jae Crowder, and Jaylen Brown.
Whatever the reason, Jackson not working out for Boston is yet another rumor to add the mix. In the end, we won’t truly know who each team is going to select until their picks are turned in on June 22nd.