At a recent event, Los Angeles Lakers greats Pat Riley and Magic Johnson sat down together. Somehow, a draft prospect’s name was mentioned.
Since the NBA Draft Lottery, the Los Angeles Lakers have known that they will be selecting with the second overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft.
Due to Markelle Fultz being the best prospect in the draft, he likely will not be on the board when the Lakers are on the clock. However, this is a deep draft with a lot of talented players.
Since the college basketball season started, one player has been linked to the Lakers the most. That is UCLA point guard Lonzo Ball. After a great freshman year at UCLA, Ball has certainly been on the radar of the Lakers, and his father LaVar has made it clear that his son will be playing in the purple and gold.
At the American Express Teamed Up event, Johnson, and Riley talked about plenty of things. Most notably was Ball. Here’s what Riley had to say about Ball and the Lakers.
Pat Riley said Magic Johnson is still a leader and is going to have the urge to go onto the court and be Lonzo Ball's mentor next season. pic.twitter.com/0LvtL18U8n
— Arash Markazi (@ArashMarkazi) June 6, 2017
The reaction from Johnson and host Cari Champion was great. Seeing their faces when Riley hinted that the Lakers would be drafting Ball was priceless.
Who had a better reaction to Pat Riley saying Magic Johnson will have the urge to mentor Lonzo Ball: @CariChampion or @MagicJohnson? pic.twitter.com/Q6hnnxS2nC
— Arash Markazi (@ArashMarkazi) June 6, 2017
In recent days, there have been reports that the Lakers aren’t as high on Ball as we all once thought. For months we have heard that Ball is the main target of the Lakers in the NBA Draft, but things could have changed.
This could also be a smokescreen by the Lakers to try and confuse some of the other teams behind them that might like some of the other projected Top-5 prospects.
While there was a lot of joking, Riley brings up an interesting point about Johnson being Ball’s mentor. One of the major cons about Ball is the antics of his father off the court. Ball has a ton of talent, and you can see some similarities in his game compared to Magic’s. If Ball was willing to listen to Magic as his mentor, the sky could be the limit.
Next: Do the Lakers take Ball in our complete first round mock draft
For now, we will have to wait and see what the NBA Draft will hold for the Lakers. However, Riley could have jokingly hinted at what the plan is.