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The Los Angeles Lakers may have forfeited the No. 4 pick in the 2019 NBA Draft to the New Orleans Pelicans in the Anthony Davis trade, but there are still a few reasons for fans of the team to tune in to the event, or at least keep track of what happens. Let’s answer some frequently asked questions on what you need to know, and how to keep up.
What time does the draft start, and where can I watch it?
This one is easy. The draft begins as 4 p.m. PT today, Thursday, June 20. You can watch it on ESPN, and on Twitter, where Woj and the other insiders will be back to tweeting the picks before they happen again, so fair warning if you don’t like spoilers.
If the Lakers don’t have a pick, why do I need to tune in?
Good question! It’s almost like I came up with these myself. Almost...
Anyway, to answer, the Lakers may not actually have the No. 4 pick, but because their deal with the Pelicans won’t be consummated for at least another two weeks, we will get the awkward moment where the player that is selected on behalf of New Orleans will have to put on a Lakers hat. So that’ll be funny, and good visual fodder for #FutureLaker tweets if whatever player that gets selected pans out.
Here is the Lakers' draft night hat, via @NewEraCap. Since the trade isn't official yet, I think whoever they take on behalf of New Orleans (or a third team) will still get handed that. Awkward, but still, it's a cool hat, so not all bad.https://t.co/WoMFQQsWrz pic.twitter.com/IwCIdnCtwQ
— Harrison Faigen (@hmfaigen) June 20, 2019
Beyond that, reports are that the Lakers want to buy a second-round pick, which would be a low-cost way to fill out their suddenly empty roster, as well as to potentially add a young prospect with possible upside to reinforce the team down the line. There would be worse uses of a couple million bucks for a professional basketball team.
If they do get a second-round pick, who will they look at?
We can’t know the answer to this one for sure, but we do know some of the players the Lakers have worked out, so that list may offer some clues.
For more answers to your burning questions, tune in for the draft, and hang out in the comments below to discuss everything as it’s happening. It should be a wild night.
For more Lakers talk, subscribe to the Silver Screen and Roll podcast feed on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher or Google Podcasts. You can follow Harrison on Twitter at @hmfaigen.