The Los Angeles Lakers are having multiple prospects workout on Monday, June 5th. We take a look at the prospects, providing some analysis and how they would fit with the Lakers.
A lot of attention will be given to the Los Angeles Lakers in the coming weeks. They own two first round picks in the 2017 NBA Draft; second and 28th overall. The second pick has been the topic of discussion for a majority of the time.
The open secret is that the Lakers want to use the second pick on UCLA point guard Lonzo Ball. The Lakers really like Ball, but they will do their due diligence with the other prospects. Ball is set to workout next week, but the Lakers also plan on having Kentucky point guard De’Aaron Fox and North Carolina State point guard Dennis Smith.
While many people will pay attention to the workouts for the bigger named prospects, the Lakers will have plenty of workouts for players under consideration for the 28th pick and to add as undrafted free agents. The Lakers do not own a second round pick as of now, but they could fill out their summer league team and training camp roster with some undrafted players.
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On Monday, June 5th, the Lakers will have a workout for a host of prospects. The Lakers will have six prospects in all coming in for workouts that day. The first one we will look at is a local product, California senior forward Roger Mbah a Bidias.
Hosting Bidias for a workout is a big peculiar. He never averaged more than 2.8 points or 11.9 minutes per game in his career at California. He was named an honorable mention for the PAC-12 All-Academic team. Bidias is also the brother to Luc Richard Mbah a Moute.
Bidias will have a tall hill to climb to really garner attention from the Lakers. Of the six prospects coming on Monday, he is the least likeliest to be seen later on in the summer or training camp.
Richmond Forward, T.J. Cline
T.J. Cline is an interesting player to watch for during the draft process. He has some good pedigree, as he is the son of Basketball Hall of Famer and current Sacramento Kings assistant coach, Nancy Lieberman. He has been around the game and knows what it will take to turn himself into an NBA player.
Cline began his career at Niagara before transferring to Richmond, where he spent the final three years of his collegiate career. He was a do-it-all forward for the Spiders. As a senior he was named the A-10 Player of the Year, and rightfully so.
He stuffed the stat sheet, averaging 18.5 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 5.6 assists per game. He led Richmond in all three categories and showed the ability to be a stretch forward.Cline made 35.1 percent of his three-pointers in college, so the tools are there to make it work in the NBA.
Cline isn’t a highly rated prospect but should get some chances. He improved throughout his college career and knows what it will take it make it based on his mother being a Hall of Famer and working in the NBA. There is some potential with Cline as a stretch power forward. He could be a developmental prospect the Lakers scoop up on the undrafted free agent pool if he doesn’t sneak into the second round.
Oklahoma State Point Guard, Jawun Evans
This year’s draft class is loaded at point guard. There is legitimate talent at the top of the draft, and a big of a drop off after them. As a result, there may be some players that sneak into the first round based on point guard needs, and Evans could be one of those guys.
Evans could be on the Lakers radar for the second of their first round picks. Evans is an excellent scoring point guard. He can get to the rim and has a solid jump shot to pair with it. His ball handling is at an elite level and he is an excellent floor general. He has everything you would want in a point guard except size and athleticism.
Evans is only 6-feet tall, lacking ideal size for the position. He doesn’t have great athleticism either, so he could struggle against some opponents. But he more than makes up for those areas with his ability to score the ball and distribute.
To go along with his offensive skill set, Evans is also a good on-ball defender. He brings a lot of toughness to the court and produced good numbers in his two years at Oklahoma State.
Evans would be a good addition to any team as a second or third point guard to start off. His ceiling is a little lower given his size and athleticism limitations, but he has the look of someone that can develop into a solid backup point guard or sixth man.
Syracuse Forward, Tyler Roberson
Tyler Roberson spent his entire collegiate career with Syracuse. He is another prospect that isn’t highly rated, but he could make a name for himself during workouts with his work ethic and rebounding.
Throughout his college career, Roberson was a monster on the boards. During his Junior season, he pulled down 150 offensive rebounds, averaging 8.5 rebounds per game. That number dropped during his senior season as he played 10 minutes fewer per game. Despite the drop in playing time, Roberson was still a difference maker on the glass, averaging 4.9 rebounds per game.
Roberson isn’t a threat with the ball in his hands as he isn’t much of a scorer. He averaged only 6.5 points per game in college, shooting only 57.5 percent from the foul line. But, there is always a spot when a player can play defense and rebound.
Roberson knows his role and would make for an interesting developmental prospect. If he could get even one go-to move offensively, it would greatly improve his chances of sticking in the NBA.
Villanova Shooting Guard, Josh Hart
Josh Hart was an excellent player for Villanova. Hart was a driving force behind Villanova winning the NCAA Tournament in 2016. He won the Player of the Year award in the Big East as a senior and was a Wooden Award finalist, for good reason.
Hart stuffed the stat sheet for Villanova. He scored 18.7 points per game to go with 6.4 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 1.5 steals. For all the positives he had at Villanova, there are questions about whether or not his talent will translate to the next level.
Hart used his strength to his advantage in college but will struggle to do the same in the NBA. He lacks the athleticism and size to finish with bigger opponents in the NBA, but there is a lot to like. Hart makes up for his lack of athleticism and size with his toughness and basketball IQ.
You can trust Hart when he is on the court as he is pretty good at everything. He can do everything well on the court. He defends well, rebounds great for his position, can distribute, and has range on his jump shot.
He could be a versatile guard for the Lakers if they end up trading D’Angelo Russell or Jordan Clarkson. He doesn’t excel at any one thing but is good at basically everything. He would be a good addition to any team looking for a good teammate and hard worker. The workouts will be important for Hart, as he is a fringe first round prospect.
Iowa State Point Guard, Monte Morris
Of all the prospects on this list, Morris may be the most intriguing one. If the Lakers plan with the No. 2 pick drastically change and they do not take Lonzo Ball, point guard will be squarely in play with the 28th pick. If that is the case, Morris is someone the Lakers should definitely consider adding.
Morris is one of the most underrated prospects in this year’s draft class. Morris has good size for a point guard, standing 6-feet-3 inches tall. Everything you want a prototypical point guard to do, Morris can do.
He is an excellent distributor that sees the court well. He has three-point range on his jump shot and rebounds well for a point guard. Arguably the most impressive thing that Morris does is limit turnovers. Despite having the ball in his hands constantly and running the offense, Morris committed only 165 turnovers in 140 career games. That kind of ball security is unheard of, as Morris had an assist-to-turnover ratio of 4.7.
The only real knock against Morris is his lack of athleticism. If he can play well in workouts, he should be able to move into the latter part of the first round. There is nothing flashy about his game, but he gets the job done.
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Morris has all of the makings of a quality backup point guard. His athleticism didn’t slow him down much in college, as he has a game that should translate well to the NBA. He should be in serious consideration at No. 28 for the Lakers, especially if Russell or Clarkson are traded this offseason.