The Los Angeles Lakers have the ability to make a selection in the first round of the NBA Draft for the first time since 2018. Los Angeles has the 17th overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft with some talented prospects potentially available.
However, for the fifth draft in a row the Lakers might not end up having a first-round pick in the draft. There is becoming increasingly likely that the Lakers trade the 17th overall pick, according to Jovan Buha of The Athletic, with multiple players being tied to the Lakers.
Some of those players would be better than others. Some of them already seem to be out of the picture because of recent developments. Kristaps Porzingis was already traded to the Boston Celtics and Gary Trent Jr. opted into his player option with the Toronto Raptors to work on an extension.
Let’s rank the others.
Ranking the rumored Lakers trade targets for the 17th pick:
4. Dorian Finney-Smith
Dorian Finney-Smith does not make a lot of sense for the Los Angeles Lakers, especially if the team is trading the 17th overall pick for him. While Finney-Smith would add wing depth to the roster, he really would not add what this team needs next season.
Finney-Smith is not a great offensive piece and he does not have a shot to help space the floor. He is a serviceable defensive player but with Jarred Vanderbilt already providing great defense the Lakers don’t need to sacrifice offense for above-average defense. Finney-Smith is also under contract for three more seasons, which is a pro and a con. The Lakers could move him in the future but there is a world in which he struggles and is stuck in LA.
Brooklyn reportedly wants to trade up in the first round and if the Lakers are getting pick 21 (or 22) and Finney-Smith for the 17th pick and Mo Bamba it would not be a bad deal, it just would be the worst of the names mentioned.
3. Buddy Hield
Buddy Hield is one of the players connected to the Los Angeles Lakers because of course he is. There is no other player in the NBA that has been connected to the Lakers as much as Hield, dating back to his days with the Sacramento Kings.
Some fans might be shocked to see him check in at No. 3 on this list with two players ahead of him. On paper, Hield is exactly what the Lakers should be trying to get as he shot lights-out from beyond the arc last season at a high output.
That being said, Hield isn’t always consistent in shooting above 40% from three. He shot just 36.6% from three during the 2021-22 season and at that rate, with no real value on defense, he essentially becomes what Malik Beasley was for the Lakers.
The Lakers can manage their assets in a better way
If the Lake Show is going to trade for Hield then it would likely take Malik Beasley, Mo Bamba and the 17th pick. For Indiana, this package would be incredible. They would get someone who can do 90% of what Hield does next season in Beasley, salary relief from waving Bamba and would get a mid-first-round pick.
Hield would fit fine in LA and would be an upgrade from Beasley but it would not be a big enough upgrade to warrant the assets being traded. Does Hield really make or break an NBA Finals run? It would be just like when the team traded Danny Green for a marginal upgrade in Dennis Schroder, missing out on Desmond Bane in the 2020 NBA Draft in the process.
2. Royce O’Neale
Royce O’Neale may not be as prolific of a three-point shooter as Hield but he still would offer great three-point shooting to the Lakers. The small forward is remarkably consistent from three as he has shot between 38 and 39% from three in four of the last five years. The only year that O’Neale didn’t shoot between 38 and 39% he shot 37.7% from three.
O’Neale also offers something that Hield doesn’t: defense. O’Neale is an above-average defensive player who would slot in perfectly as a three-and-D wing on this Lakers team. Los Angeles didn’t have anyone that could defend at a high level and knock down shots on the other end. His offensive game might be limited but O’Neale could do that.
O’Neale is exactly the kind of player that you want in a playoff rotation, even if he is only logging 20 minutes off the bench. Hield is someone that if it is not going well he will not play in the playoffs at all. Look at Beasley.
The Lakers could pull off a magical trade for Royce O’Neale
In a perfect world, Los Angeles could make a similar trade to the Dorian Finney-Smith trade that was previously mentioned. If Los Angeles could swing Bamba and the 17th pick for O’Neale and the 22rd pick it would be a home run.
Would salary relief and moving up five spots be enough for Brooklyn to move off one year of O’Neale? It is hard to say. If that package itself was a guarantee O’Neale would rank No. 1. But it isn’t and there is one player that is still a lot more exciting.
1. Myles Turner
Like Hield, Myles Turner has been tied to the Los Angeles Lakers for quite some time now. But it goes much deeper than that for Turner, who legitimately would be in the NBA rumors Hall of Fame as he has seemingly been on the market for years.
Perhaps this is the time that Turner gets traded as he is coming off of a career year. And while his trade value never quite lines up with what Indiana asks for, Turner would be such a great fit on the Lakers it is impossible to ignore.
His ability to spread the floor and hit shots both as an off-ball option and as an initiator while also being able to protect the rim on the other side would be so beneficial to the Lakers. It would allow Anthony Davis to be the center on offense and be the roaming free safety-type of defender on defense.
In the regular season, this might not always work when the Lakers are running man. But in a playoff series? Turner could make a huge difference. After watching how well it worked with a smaller Rui Hachimura off the bench, Lakers fans should be confident in a potential Turner addition.
In a perfect world, the Lakers can get back a draft pick with Turner
The Pacers have three total picks in the first round and they reportedly are looking to trade up in the draft. That being said, it might be a bit far-fetched for the Lakers to get the 26th or 29th pick as well as Turner in this deal.
But could the Lakers get pick 32 with Turner? Absolutely. A package of Malik Beasley, Mo Bamba and the 17th pick works financially. If Rob Pelinka gets his negotiator hat on, he could try to get Indiana to throw in pick 32 as there won’t be enough roster space for it, allowing LA to still make two picks in the draft.
With LA’s scouting and development, the ability to get Myles Turner and only move back 15 spots in the draft would be massive.