10. Svi Mykhailiuk- SG/SF
If you are one of the many who took the time out of your summer to watch Summer League basketball despite the fact that the Lakers did not have a lottery pick participating for the first time in four years, then you probably fell in love with Svi Mykhailiuk.
Svi– which is what I will refer to him as from now on because who the hell wants to read Mykhailiuk that many times, let alone type it– was easily the team’s best player outside of Josh Hart, who made his dominance as a second-year player known during the tournament. Coming into the tournament many felt lukewarm, at best, about the selection of Svi.
It is safe to say that is no longer the case as he quickly catapulted himself into the upper echelon of fan favorite Lakers. Svi is on track to accrue a Kuzma-esque level of adoration by Lakers fans, especially after he shows the potential value he can bring to the Lakers on the court next season.
At his core, Svi is a shooter and a very good one at that. This is something the team needs, even though they don’t need it as bad as some Lakers critics might lend you to believe. Regardless, you could always use a knockdown shooter, especially on a team with LeBron James on it.
Throughout the duration of Summer League Svi began to show signs that he may be more than just a spot-up shooter. He played very well, high effort defense, albeit against far inferior competition than he will see come October. This was very encouraging to see as defense was thought to be one of his weaknesses coming into the league due to his short wingspan and overall lack of athleticism.
This may very well still be the case, but his play this summer on that side of the ball was a step in the right direction.
Svi may very well end up being the team’s biggest surprise contributor this season, but there is one problem. He has to get on the court first. This team has a surplus of wings and someone’s minutes will be a victim of that.
Given that he is a rookie and can spend time developing in the G-League, that victim may end up being Svi, which is why he is so far down this list despite the fact that I like him more than some of the names to come.