Lakers News: ESPN Projects LA Will Select SEC Star With First Round Draft Pick

Los Angeles has the No. 17 pick this year.

Amidst all the top sports broadcasters out there, ESPN has some of the sharpest basketball minds on the block.

Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo number among the Worldwide Leader's best and brightest NBA draft analysts. That dynamic duo just cooked up a new mock draft, following this year's pre-draft combine and pro day.

Your Los Angeles Lakers have both their own picks this year: the No. 17 pick in the first round, and the No. 47 pick in the second round. Last season, team president Rob Pelinka prioritized shooting and defense in selecting intriguing project Max Christie, a shooting guard, out of Michigan State University. Christie did crack the team's rotation during the first half of the season, but was demoted back to the deep bench following a flurry of trades to improve the club's depth.

Givony and Woo believe that 6'4" University of Kentucky combo guard Cason Wallace, an All-SEC Freshman selection this past season, could be a good match for LA with the No. 17 pick.

Across 32 contests (all starts) Wallace averaged 11.7 points on a .446/.346/.757 slash line, 4.3 assists, 3.7 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 0.5 blocks a night.

"Wallace measured better than expected at the draft combine [he has a 6'8.5" wingspan] but appears to have a bit of a wider range on draft night than other lottery candidates, as some teams don't view him as a surefire point guard or primary creator and others question his scoring credentials," Givony wrote. "Still, there aren't many better defenders in the class than Wallace. His strong dimensions (comparable to multi-positional guards like De'Anthony Melton, Bruce Brown and Tyrese Maxey) give him significant versatility to tap into when paired with his excellent instincts and intensity level, especially when surrounded with talent on a playoff team."

Los Angeles can use all the help it can get in terms of ball handling and guard defense. Wallace sounds pretty darn promising, however, and one wonders if he'll even stick around till this late in the draft, given that other teams with similar needs, like the Toronto Raptors (No. 13), Atlanta Hawks (No. 15), and the Utah Jazz (No. 16), will all be selecting before the Lakers.

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