Lakers Draft Evaluations: Comparing Then & Now
By Nate Edelman
Jun 26, 2014; Brooklyn, NY, USA; A general view as the names of the first round draft picks are displayed above the stage during the 2014 NBA Draft at the Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
The Lakers organization, players, fans, etc. are now only thinking about these three words: the NBA Draft. The draft, held in New York City on June 25, may be the biggest Laker event since the 2010 NBA Finals.
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The Lakers have the opportunity to bring in a young star to build upon for the future, drastically accelerating the rebuild process the Lakers are currently in. But is this draft pick guaranteed to help the Lakers go back to their winning ways? Hardly. Busts happen in every draft. For example, who remembers Hasheem Thabeet?
After leading UConn to their first Final Four since 2004, Thabeet was drafted #2 overall to Minnesota and was compared to Dikembe Mutumbo. Since then, Thabeet has bounced around the league, and is now playing for the Grand Rapids Drive in the NBA D-League. He is largely considered one of the biggest draft busts of all time. But enough about Thabeet, this is a Lakers blog! How successful have the Lakers been in drafting players? Let’s take a look at some Lakers draft picks over the years and see how well they’ve turned out compared to their draft evaluations.
(Disclaimer: Julius Randle won’t be included, one NBA game is too small of a sample size. Ronnie Price and Carlos Boozer are also not included because there wasn’t enough draft information 10+ years ago. All draft evaluations are provided by nbadraft.net, bleacherreport.com, and draftexpress.com)
Next: The Second Round Surprise