Los Angeles Lakers: How are all the Lakers’ draft choices doing?

2018 Draft

Moritz Wagner, the No. 25 pick, was also picked as a stretch big. But he was injured in Summer League and got off to a slow start with the Lakers. He played about half the year on the varsity team, averaging just 10 minutes a game while scoring five points per game.

He was traded to the Wizards in July in a salary-cap clearing move. He has begun to show his potential with Washington, averaging 11.3 points and six rebounds in 20 MPG while shooting 59 percent overall and 36.5 percent from beyond the arc before missing 25 games with an ankle injury.

Overall: Wagner’s game fits the modern NBA quite well. He’s another player who should have a successful career.

Isaac Bonga was taken as a project with the 39th pick. The Lakers liked his potential, especially on defense. He spent most of his rookie year in the G League, appearing in just 22 NBA games in which his contributions were negligible.

He was traded to the Wizards along with Wagner. At age 20, he is still raw and has a long way to go but has started 33 games, playing nearly 18 minutes a game. His offense remains a work in progress (4.8 PPG) but he utilizes his long arms well on defense.

Overall: It’s too soon to tell what kind of career Bonga will have.

Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk was drafted 47th because of the 3-point shooting ability he showed in college. But he struggled in his 39 games with the Lakers, hitting only 33 percent of his long-range shots. In a surprising midseason move, he was traded to Detroit.

In his second NBA season, Svi is finding the range from deep, connecting on 42 percent of his 3-point attempts and averaging nine points a game in 22 minutes.

Overall: It looks like Mykhailiuk will be a nice weapon off the bench (“3 for Svi”) for many years.