NCAA Tournament 2016: 5 Midwest Region Players for Lakers to Watch

1. Jakob Poeltl

As stated when we talked about the South Region and Jaylen Brown, the Lakers have to assess their options if they keep their first-round pick, but wind up at No. 3 and subsequently miss out on Ben Simmons and Brandon Ingram. Given their needs going into the 2016 Draft—particularly their glaring hole at center—a player like Jakob Poeltl is someone that should unquestionably be on their radar in the Big Dance.

The sophomore for the Utah Utes had a bit-time season in helping his team become a force out of the Pac-12. With legit 7-1 size to his credit as well, Poeltl put up 17.7 points, nine rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1.6 blocks in 30.6 minutes per game while converting on 65 percent of his shot attempts. The big man is quite skilled for a young player at his size and has a strong frame that’s still developing and could make him even more dangerous as he gets stronger at the professional level.

Next: NCAA Tourney: 5 Players in South Region Lakers Should Watch

Poeltl is projected outside of the top-3 picks in most mock drafts, but the Utah center could wind up on the Lakers’ radar depending on what they feel is their biggest need to address in the draft and if they end up having the No. 3 pick. If Los Angeles decides that they need to acquire a big man with that pick, Poeltl would be one of the safest options and, subsequently, the organization needs to take a long look at what he does in the NCAA Tournament.