Los Angeles Lakers: What Kyle Kuzma, Josh Hart, Thomas Bryant can bring
Josh Hart
With the 30th pick in the draft, the Lakers selected Villanova senior Josh Hart to add depth to their backcourt.
Hart had a very productive senior year for the Wildcats. He averaged 18.7 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 2.9 assists on the year while shooting 51% from the field.
The main reason the Los Angeles Lakers drafted the guard is primarily two-fold. Firstly, Hart is able to score the basketball very efficiently. He led the Big East in points scored this past season, as well as ranking third in effective field goal percentage.
Hart is very crafty around the rim, shooting 66 percent from that distance in half-court settings this past year in college. However, his main offensive weapon is his ability to spot up from three-point range. Hart converted 40% of his attempts in his final year at Villanova while taking roughly 5 per game.
Moreover, Hart is also a capable defender, playing for a Villanova system that prides themselves on that end of the floor.
Although Hart is not extremely long or athletic, he is an intelligent defender who uses his strength and toughness to stop the opposition from scoring.
This past season, Hart averaged a respectable 1.5 steals per game, putting him seventh in steal percentage in the Big East. He also led the Big East in defensive win shares the past two seasons, which is in part why Villanova won the NCAA tournament in 2016. Additionally, this season Hart was ranked a college career best second in the Big East in defensive rating at 94.6, showing his clear potential on this end.
Therefore, with four years of college experience under his belt, Hart is one of the more NBA-ready prospects to come out of this year’s draft. He could immediately make an impact as a solid 3-and-D player for the Lakers.