5. Drafting Lonzo Ball and Kyle Kuzma in 2017
Out of the three number two picks the Lakers had from 2015-2017, Lonzo Ball definitely entered the league with the most hype. In his opening press conference with the Lakers, Magic Johnson anointed him as the next Lakers legend that was poised to break his records and have his name in the rafters.
To make things even weirder, most of his hype stemmed from his father LaVar Ball who basically spoke the Lakers drafting Lonzo into existence during his pre-draft media barrage.
However, the rookie that went on to have the better season was the other one they drafted in the first round, Kyle Kuzma. They both had outstanding Summer League performances, but Kuzma carried his over into the regular season more so than Ball did.
Kuzma ended up becoming a fan favorite because of his ability to light it up scoring on any given night, and he ended up with the Lakers rookie record for 3-pointers in a season. Ball, on the other hand, struggled mightily shooting the ball in his first season, and his defense and passing were the only tools in his game that translated to the pros.
With this draft class, that also included Josh Hart, the Lakers had a budding young core of players that were dubbed the “Baby Lakers.” Laker fans seemed enamored with the potential future these guys had together, and even balked at trading them for superstar talent.
In the end, drafting Ball turned out to be a great thing for the Lakers because it made them somewhat relevant and exciting to watch again, and even more importantly gave them an opportunity to make a blockbuster trade.
Lucky for the Lakers, they were able to hold on to Kyle Kuzma and he is the last one of the Baby Lakers left on the roster. Now he has the potential to be the x-factor and the third scoring option on a team that is contending for a championship.