Lakers News: LA Brought In NCAA Prospects, G Leaguer For Midweek Draft Audition
Your Los Angeles Lakers are taking a proactive approach to the 2023 NBA draft, I'm happy to declare.
Per Dave McMenamin of ESPN, team vice president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka snuck in a midweek pre-draft workout on Tuesday, bringing in six league hopefuls for an audition -- five NCAA athletes and one NBA G League alum.
This marks the third such workout that we know of, along with reported tryouts on May 26th and June 2nd.
University of Texas at Austin guard Marcus Car, Virginia Tech forward Justyn Mutts, UCLA point guard Tyger Campbell, Gonzaga forward Anton Watson, Texas Tech forward Kevin Obanor, and Ontario Clippers wing Djordjije Jovanovic comprised this Tuesday group. Outside of the G Leaguer, all these players boast multiple years of college experience.
Let's unpack these candidates, none of whom are on ESPN's latest mock draft this year.
Marcus Carr helped the Longhorns reach the Elite Eight during this year's NCAA Tournament. The 6'2" lead guard, a two-time All-Big 12 honoree, averaged 15.9 points on .428/.368/.772 shooting splits, 4.1 assists, 3.0 rebounds, and 1.6 steals across 38 contests for Texas (all starts) last season, his fifth collegiate stint (students impacted by the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic were given a bonus season of NCAA eligibility).
Campbell, known as a quick-limbed defender during his Bruins tenure, averaged 13.4 points on .378/.338/.856 shooting splits in 2022-23, 5.0 assists, 2.6 rebounds, and 1.2 steals per night. He was an NCAA All-Region Team selection and has thrice been named a three-time All-Pac-12 honoree.
In 33 contests for Virginia Tech this past season, the 6'7" Mutts logged averages of 13.3 points on a .568/.325/.616 slash line, 7.4 boards, 4.6 dimes, 1.5 steals and 0.8 blocks per game. Considered a solid multi-positional defender with solid passing acumen, Mutts seems like a great young prospect for Los Angeles.
Anton Watson, a 6'8" power forward out of Gonzaga, seems positively Rui Hachimura-esque in certain respects, as an athletic forward with good size for his position hailing from the same alma matter.
Prior to his transfer to Texas Tech in 2021, Obanor, a 6'8" small forward, was a two-time All-Summit Leaguer while still with Oral Roberts.
Across just 12 games with the Los Angeles Clippers' G League club in Ontario, Jovanovic averaged a modest six points on .368/.289/.417 shooting splits and 1.2 rebounds. He certainly seems like more of a long-term project for the Lakers.
Los Angeles possesses the No. 17 and No. 47 picks this year.
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