I would not be upset if the Lakers wound up with Josh Jackson. Might be able to trade down and get him and another pick.
Unless it was something like LAL takes Lonzo and Philly takes Jackson, and then they just swap hats like Antawn Jamison and Vince Carter back in the day, I hope LAL wouldn't gamble otherwise
Dick VitaleVerified account@DickieV Man I agree with @JalenRose as I have been saying Josh Jackson is best overall talent in @NBA draft @MagicJohnson Lol Dickie V @'ing Magic
Durant's "mean mugging" is about as convincing as Chris Webber's. Great player, but hardly a bad ass.
L.A. Lakers Not Entirely Sold on Lonzo Ball, Holding out Hope for Markelle Fultz Kevin Ding June 9, 2017 LOS ANGELES — Lonzo Ball was fine. He was humble and respectful in conversation over meals. He shot the ball well on the court. He very well might be the Los Angeles Lakers’ draft pick in two weeks’ time. Yet Ball also didn’t blow the Lakers away or seal any deal in the time he spent with their officials Tuesday and Wednesday, according to sources. The Lakers remain intrigued by Markelle Fultz and Josh Jackson, and to a lesser extent De'Aaron Fox, along with Ball for their No. 2 overall pick. They are hopeful they can get Fultz in for a workout despite speculation that he would work out only for the Boston Celtics, who hold the No. 1 overall pick. Lakers officials just went to meet and scout Jackson in Sacramento on Thursday, and Fox is coming in to see the Lakers on Tuesday. http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...-angeles-lakers-have-questions-ahead-of-draft
Makes you wonder who has the final word in the draft room, doesn't it? Luke (can't see it)......Pelinka (possibly)........Earvin (not sure how I feel about him evaluating personnel)....Jeannie (same as Luke) Any ideas?
Looking like no Lonzo for LA which is disappointing to me personally but I'm no expert and HAVE TO trust the FO on this.
One could maybe look at all these leaks as misdirection, or one could maybe look at all these leaks as preparation..as in preparing LAL fans for no Lonzo on draft night. I see it as the latter simply because you don't have to be this open..there are ways to let it be known that you like this guy and that guy through back channels and still have opposing teams understand that you hold all the cards, so they can't leave you out of any trade conversations. Nah, I believe these leaks are for the fans, so I would be pretty shocked at this point if they do take Lonzo. I like Lonzo, think he can handle being a Laker, think he has some superstar potential and should be one of the better shooters at his position, enjoy Lavar, but ultimately Jackson brings more immediately and more than likely long term as well. What I'm trying to figure out is why the Celtics aren't taking Jackson. Fultz is excellent, for sure, but they have small guard play..all they've preaching about is trying to make runs at wing types in Paul George and Jimmy Butler..well Jackson is that and he handles the ball..and you get more team control over Jackson. Fultz had a strong year, but he was right there with Lonzo/Fox/Tatum in high school a year ago..all of them ranked notches below #1 Jackson.
Final word probably belongs to Magic, but I'd assume that he would side with Pelinka this early in the partnership or that they would come to an agreement and show a united front. Or at least that's what they would feed us, the public, because it's just way too damn early to have " it was Magic VS Pelinka in the war room! " Nah, they're about to try to sign big time free agents, so they have to show some inner stability publicly and at least try to truly have that this early. Many other parts to the FO as well, though, and so you never who's pushing for whom or where these " split " reports are coming from..you have Ryan West ( Jerry's boy), you have Joey and Jesse Buss, the great Bill Bertka will probably chime in with his favorite, Luke will push for his fave even though he's just HC because they've empowered him and given him some say over personnel, etc. And funny enough, it wouldn't shock me if Kobe chimed in with his fave because of all the reported interest Magic/Pelinka have in somewhat using his acumen to a degree.
Los Angeles Lakers owner Jeanie Buss and Maverick Carter, business manager of Cleveland Cavaliers superstar LeBron James, have met recently. Anthony F. Irwin ✔ @AnthonyIrwinLA To add to @KevinOConnorNBA’s LeBron report earlier, I’m hearing Jeanie Buss and Maverick Carter have meet three times in the last few months 1:57 PM - 8 Jun 2017
The Lakers reportedly want to play like the Warriors Easier said than done. by Harrison Faigen@hmfaigen Jun 9, 2017, 1:33pm PDT ..The organizational goal is to get to a point where the team is playing largely positionless basketball the way Walton’s former team, the Golden State Warriors, do—with current youngsters Brandon Ingram, D’Angelo Russell, Julius Randle and Jordan Clarkson all already capable of bringing the ball up the floor. ..As Ingram gets a little bigger, he’ll be able to take some minutes at the four, and a player like Jackson (should the Lakers take him) would add another multi-positional weapon to head coach Luke Walton’s tool box. http://www.silverscreenandroll.com/...n-state-warriors-stephen-curry-brandon-ingram
Fox is extremely overhyped based on one game. He's a mediocre prospect. And the narrative that he's some elite defender is flawed too. Ball outperformed him statistically on defense as well as 99% of other categories In terms of points per possession Ball was Overall Offense - 92nd percentile (1.072) Defense - 88th percentile (.703) He also did work against power 5 teams Offense - 87th percentile (1.03 PPP) Defense - 89th percentile (.697 PPP) Non power 5 teams Offense - 95th percentile (1.10) Defense - 86th percentile (.714) Compared to Fox Fox Overall O: 0.869, 48th D: 0.813, 61st Power 5 O: 0.921, 62nd D: 0.848, 49th Non Power 5 O: 0.607, 8th D: 0.714, 86th Stats provided by Synergy
Lakers Draft Rumors: Execs Believe L.A. Will Still Take Lonzo Ball In NBA Draft Rumors have been flying about just what the Los Angeles Lakers will do with the second overall pick in the NBA Draft. Shortly after the Draft Lottery, the vast majority thought that they would select UCLA guard Lonzo Ball, but in recent weeks that sentiment is changing. Now, it appears that there is a very real chance that they could go with Kansas forward Josh Jackson or Kentucky guard De’Aaron Fox. The Lakers are going to do a full investigation into all candidates, including Washington guard Markelle Fultz, who most believe will be selected by the Boston Celtics with the first overall pick. They aren’t rumored to be locked in on any particular candidate, which opens up the possibility that they surprise everyone on draft day and select someone other than Ball. That said, according to Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com, the majority of league executives he spoke to at the Adidas Euro Camp believe that, at the end of the day, it’s Ball that will wind up playing for Los Angeles: Majority of execs at #adidasEuroCamp still believe #Lakers take Ball at 2. Belief is L.A. likes Fox and Jackson, but continues to lean Ball. — Scott Howard-Cooper (@SHowardCooper) June 10, 2017
