Los Angeles Lakers start draft workouts with six players

NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 01: Ethan Happ #22 of the Wisconsin Badgers celebrates the 59-54 win over the Maryland Terrapins during the second round of the Big Ten Basketball Tournament at Madison Square Garden on March 1, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /

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Louisville Center, Anas Mahmoud

Anas Mahmoud was teammates with Deng Adel at Louisville. The university was riled in scandals, but he was able to still have a solid season on the court.

The senior will be intriguing to NBA teams because of his presence defensively. At 7-feet tall and with long arms, he is a great shot blocker. He averaged 2.9 blocks per game in his senior season. He is pretty mobile for a center as well, which helps him patrol the paint.

However, he needs to add some size and strength. Despite being 7-feet tall, Mahmoud weighs only 215 pounds. That is something that will have to go up otherwise he will get manhandled in the paint. He isn’t a great rebounder for his size, averaging only 5.0 per game, which was third on the team last season. Adding strength and muscle will help in that area as well.

Offensively he is extremely raw. He averaged 6.8 points per game. That is a number that improved each season he was at Louisville, which is nice to see. He needs to develop a go-to move to at least make opposing defenses keep an eye on him.

While Mahmoud is far from a finished product, there is a lot to like here. He has a good motor and already has an elite skill as a shot blocker. If he can develop anything offensively, he has a good shot to stick in the NBA.

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