The days of glory for the Los Angeles Lakers have gone out of the window in recent years. The team finished a lonely 17-65 this season while watching Kobe Bryant fade into retirement. With the No. 2 overall pick in the NBA Draft on June 23, the Lakers will be looking for the impact player they badly need to replace Bryant and turn the franchise around once again. The question is who will the Lakers end up taking with that pick?
With the Bryant gone, the team’s leading scorer is Jordan Clarkson. The problem is that Clarkson is a restricted free agent and could be gone as well. Clarkson averaged 15.5 points a game this season behind Bryant’s 17.6 a game. There are just six players under contract for next season for the Lakers. D’Angelo Russell and Julius Randle are nice building blocks but a big name needs to show up to give the Lakers any hopes of getting out of the cellar in the Western Conference.
There has been plenty of talk about Ben Simmons falling to the second pick if the Philadelphia 76ers doesn’t take him with the first overall selection. If that doesn’t happen though, the belief is that Brandon Ingram from Duke is the pick. Ingram has been compared to Kevin Durant, who was also the No. 2 draft in the pick many years ago. If Ingram is the pick to go with Russell and Randle, there is some serious potential going on in Los Angeles moving forward.