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Draft Notes: Josh Jackson, Fultz, Smith Jr., Heat

June 14th, 2017 at 10:38pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kansas forward Josh Jackson paid a visit to Kings today, but didn’t go through a workout, tweets Ailene Voisin of The Sacramento Bee. Jackson is expected to be one of the first players selected next week and probably won’t be around for Sacramento’s pick at No. 5. There have been rumors that the Kings would like to move up, but a report today said they aren’t willing to give the Sixers the fifth and 10th picks to get No. 3.

There’s more from a full day of draft workouts:

Washington’s Markelle Fultz, projected as the top pick, has decided not to visit the Kings, according to Voisin (Twitter link).
Paolo Uggetti of The Ringer examines which top three team might have given Jackson a guarantee. A report Monday by John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 suggested that either the Celtics, Lakers or Sixers has promised to take Jackson if he’s still on the board when their pick comes up. Jackson canceled a workout this week with Boston and agreed to a second session in L.A.
Along with a second workout for Lonzo Ball, the Lakers will audition six other players on Friday, tweets Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News. Their names have not been released.
North Carolina State’s Dennis Smith Jr. may be in danger of slipping on draft night, tweets Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer. However, some members of Philadelphia’s front office are intrigued by Smith and the team may trade down to get him, posts Ian Begley on ESPN Now.
UCLA’s T.J. Leaf will visit Miami on Thursday to work out for the Heat, writes Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. The Heat see him as a stretch four who can hit 3-pointers and rebound and will give him serious consideration with their No. 14 pick, Jackson adds.
Duke’s Harry Giles canceled a workout with the Heat that was scheduled for Thursday, Jackson relays in the same story.
Kentucky’s Bam Adebayo will be part of a group workout for the Nuggets on Friday, tweets Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders.
The Nuggets will host six players Thursday, the team announced in an email. Participating will be Florida’s Canyon Barry, Air Force’s Hayden Graham, Miami’s Kamari Murphy, Baylor’s Johnathan Motley, Arizona’s Kobi Simmons and Gonzaga’s Nigel Williams-Goss.
Wisconsin’s Bronson Koenig, who has upcoming sessions with the Lakers and Warriors, is impressing teams with his shooting, Scotto relays (Twitter link).
Creighton’s Cole Huff has workouts set for the Celtics on Thursday and the Lakers on Monday, tweets Adam Zagoria of Zagsblog.
North Carolina’s Justin Jackson has workouts lined up with the Knicks, Hornets, Bucks and Trail Blazers, according to Begley.
Jackson will be part of a Pacers workout Thursday, along with Clemson’s Jaron Blossomgame, Houston’s Damyean Dotson, Marquette’s Luke Fischer, Vanderbilt’s Luke Kornet and Louisville’s Donovan Mitchell, the team announced on its website.
Northeastern’s T.J. Williams has an upcoming workout with the Knicks and has already auditioned for the Jazz, Lakers, Clippers, Timberwolves and Raptors, Begley writes in a separate piece.
Iowa’s Peter Jok, IUPUI’s Darell Combs, Syracuse’s Andrew White III, Connecticut’s Amida Brimah, Siena’s Marquis Wright and Lehigh’s Tim Kempton Jr. will work out Thursday for the Wizards, the team announced on its official blog.
The Hawks hosted six players for a workout earlier today, according to the team. Participants were Kempton, California’s Jabari Bird, Loyola-Chicago’s Milton Doyle, Gonzaga’s Przemek Karnowski, Middle Tennessee State’s Reggie Upshaw and Colorado’s Derrick White.
Six players worked out today for the Jazz, the team tweeted. On hand were Indiana’s James Blackmon, Dayton’s Charles Cooke, Weber State’s Jeremy Senglin, Eastern Washington’s Jake Wiley, Alabama’s Jimmie Taylor and Texas A&M CC’s Rashawn Thomas.

Lonzo Ball To Meet With Lakers Again Friday

June 14th, 2017 at 7:13pm CST by Arthur Hill

Potential No. 2 pick Lonzo Ball will have his final pre-draft session with the Lakers on Friday, tweets Shams Charania of The Vertical. The workout will not take place at the team’s facility, according to Tania Ganguli of The Los Angeles Times (Twitter link).

Ball wants Lakers officials to see his work ethic and training methods, tweets Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com. Representatives from the team met with Ball’s UCLA coaches this week (Twitter link).

The 19-year-old guard worked out for L.A. seven days ago, with mixed reports coming out of that session. Ball said the messages he received from the Lakers were “very positive,” but some media reports indicated the team wasn’t overly impressed by Ball’s performance and had concerns about his conditioning.

Ball is listed as the second pick in the latest mock drafts from ESPN’s Chad Ford and DraftExpress. Despite the rumors coming out of last week’s workout, most league executives expect him to wind up in Los Angeles.

The Lakers have a workout scheduled for Thursday with Washington point guard Markelle Fultz, who is widely expected to be the first player selected.

Lillard: If Blazers Didn't Want Me, I'd Want To Join Jazz Or Lakers

June 14th, 2017 at 3:58pm CST by Luke Adams

Veteran NBA forward Metta World Peace, who said at season’s end that he doesn’t expect to be back with the Lakers in 2017/18, has an uncertain basketball future and intends to put off a decision on his next move until August. As Emiliano Carchia of Sportando details, World Peace told Italy’s La Gazzetta Dello Sport that he’s leaving the door open to the possibility of playing in China or Europe if no NBA opportunities arise for him.

Damian Lillard created some speculation fodder during a Twitter Q&A with fans today when he answered a question about where he’d sign if he had to leave Portland. “If [the] Blazers said they didn’t want me… Utah Jazz or Lakers,” Lillard replied (via Twitter). Lillard is under contract through 2021, so Blazers fans should have nothing to worry about anytime soon.

Lakers Rumors: CP3, LeBron, Jackson

June 14th, 2017 at 1:52pm CST by Luke Adams

As for the Clippers, Wojnarowski doesn’t see a scenario in which the club is able to bring back Griffin, Chris Paul, and J.J. Redick. And while Redick is probably the most likely of the three to change teams, Woj thinks there’s a “real chance” the Clippers would move on from from Paul if the two sides can’t come to a quick agreement when free agency begins. Wojnarowski names the Spurs, Heat, Lakers, and Rockets as teams that could get involved in the CP3 sweepstakes if the veteran point guard seriously considers leaving the Clips.

[SOURCE LINK]

The Cavaliers aren’t necessarily assuming it’s a given that LeBron James will re-sign with them in 2018. A move out west – possibly to the Lakers or Clippers – a year from now is “very much in play” for LeBron, according to Wojnarowski.
While the Lakers haven’t necessarily made any decisions yet, they’re “looking hard” at Josh Jackson with the No. 2 pick. Wojnarowski observes that there are a lot of voices in the team’s front office, so Jackson has support from some execs.

Lakers Scheduling Second Workout With Lonzo Ball

June 13th, 2017 at 10:30pm CST by marksuleymanov

10:50pm: Mike Bresnahan of Spectrum SportsNet (via Twitter) reports that Markelle Fultz will work out for the Lakers on Thursday and while there’s no official date, Ball will have a second workout.

10:30pm: After completing a pre-draft workout with UCLA product Lonzo Ball last week, team president Magic Johnson is in the process of scheduling a second workout with the standout guard, according to Brad Turner of the Los Angeles Times (via Twitter).

Ball worked out for the Lakers last Wednesday and reports coming out of the session were mixed. For his part, the 19-year-old Ball relayed a positive message after running drills and enjoying a meal with Lakers brass the night before.

“They said they want me to come in, if I get picked, and be a leader,” Ball said (via NBA.com). “Play with a lot of pace. The stuff they were saying was very positive, and it kind of fits my game.”

However, a report from Kevin Ding of Bleacher Report claimed that while Ball’s workout was fine, he did not “blow away” the Lakers with his performance. In a separate report from Mark Medina of The Orange County Register, the Lakers were reportedly concerned with Ball’s conditioning.

The Lakers have long been connected to the California native; in addition to being a local product, Ball’s outspoken father, LaVar Ball, has said that his son would only work out and play for the Lakers. While the general consensus remains that the team will utilize its second overall pick on Ball, a series of reports have suggested that his performance has not set that in stone.

Ball posted numbers of 14.6 PPG, 7.6 APG and 6.0 RPG through 36 games in his lone season at UCLA.

Lakers Host Josh Jackson For Workout

June 13th, 2017 at 2:08pm CST by Luke Adams

After working out De’Aaron Fox earlier in the day, the Lakers are hosting another top-five prospect for a private workout this afternooon. The team announced today that former Kansas forward Josh Jackson will be in town for an audition (Twitter link). It will be the second time the Lakers have gotten a first-hand look at Jackson, having met with him in Sacramento last week.

Jackson’s workout with the Lakers comes on the heels of a Monday report indicating that he cancelled a workout with the Celtics, who have the No. 1 overall pick in the draft. There has been speculation that Jackson received a draft promise, but Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders tweets that the Lakers have told agents that haven’t made any promises to anyone.

If Jackson received a guarantee from a team drafting third or later, it’s not clear why he would cancel a workout with the Celtics, but not with the Lakers, so there could be another explanation for his decision. As our Dana Gauruder speculated on Monday night, perhaps Los Angeles is simply Jackson’s preferred landing spot.

We also heard a month ago that some agents may be reluctant to let their clients work out for the Celtics, since Boston already has a deep, talented lineup — a rookie who lands with the C’s, even a top prospect, is less likely to have a major role right away than he would with another lottery team.

Regardless of Jackson’s intentions or his workout schedule, the ex-Jayhawk is considered a lock to come off the board within the first few picks of this year’s draft. As for the Lakers, they’re viewed as a likely landing spot for Lonzo Ball, but they’re doing their homework on top prospects like Fox and Jackson as well, and have yet to make any final decisions.

Ball-Russell Backcourt Would Be A Mixed Bag

June 12th, 2017 at 9:14pm CST by Dana Gauruder

A Lakers backcourt of D’Angelo Russell and Lonzo Ball might be potent offensively but a liability defensively, as Eric Pincus examines in a Bleacher Report piece. Russell could run pick-and-rolls, while Ball would excel in transition and ball movement, though neither tends to attack off the dribble, Pincus continues. The biggest concern would be on the defensive end because of quickness issues, which would require the Lakers to have a speedy, defensive-minded guard to rotate with both players, Pincus adds.

Kansas State shooting guard Wesley Iwundu and Vanderbilt big man Luke Kornet headed the list of six draft hopeful that the Lakers brought in on Monday, the team’s website reported. Iwundu is ranked No. 53 overall by Draft Express, while Kornet comes in at No. 67. The Lakers do not have a second-round pick.

Markelle Fultz To Meet With Lakers

June 12th, 2017 at 6:02pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Projected top pick Markelle Fultz is expected to meet this week with the Lakers, who hold the No. 2 pick, a source told Adam Zagoria of The 4 Quarters Podcast (Twitter link).

Fultz spent two days with the Celtics earlier this month and it’s generally assumed the University of Washington point guard will be Boston’s choice on draft day. The fact that Fultz is willing to meet with the team holding the next pick at this stage suggests that the Celtics may not be completely sold on Fultz, or at least haven’t made any promises that he’ll be their pick. It’s noteworthy that Fultz is only scheduled to meet with the Lakers and not work out for them, though that obviously could change.

The Fultz meeting the Lakers could also be a hedge by his representatives in case Boston decides to swap the pick in a blockbuster deal.

The Lakers did meet with Fultz at the scouting combine in Chicago last month. While most projections have Los Angeles taking UCLA passing wizard Lonzo Ball, the Lakers are covering all their bases. Some members of their front office are supposedly bullish on Kansas small forward Josh Jackson, and they will hold a closed workout for Kentucky point guard De’Aaron Fox on Tuesday morning, Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News tweets.

Lonzo Ball Out Of Shape At Lakers' Workout?

June 12th, 2017 at 11:49am CST by Luke Adams

Although the Lakers are impressed with Lonzo Ball‘s passing, scoring, and leadership potential, some team observers of his workout with the team believe he came in out of shape, writes Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News. Ball is still viewed as the odds-on favorite to be the No. 2 overall pick in this year’s draft, but if the Lakers do go in another direction, conditioning concerns could play a part in that decision.

Draft Notes: Smith Jr., Collins, Leaf, Sixers

June 11th, 2017 at 9:36pm CST by Austin Kent

The Lakers have a short list of players they’re said to be targeting with the No. 2 pick in this year’s NBA Draft but they opted to bring North Carolina State guard Dennis Smith Jr. for a workout just in case they trade down, Mark Medina of the Orange County Register writes.

Smith Jr., a possible top-10 pick, participated in a group workout this weekend with a series of other draft hopefuls, including Syracuse’s Tyler Lydon. The guard impressed in the audition, his talent a cut above the rest.

Smith Jr. was sure to do his homework prior to his day with the Lakers and thinks that he can fill a void.

“I checked one of the stats and they’re bottom 10 in almost everything relative to pick-and-roll scoring,” he said. “I think I can contribute to that.”

There are more draft notes from around the league:

While he may not be around when the Jazz pick 24th in this month’s draft, TJ Leaf believes he would be a good fit with the franchise, Jody Genessy of the Deseret News writes. “Obviously draft number’s a big deal as well, but if I drop a couple of places and go to a team with a perfect fit, that’s who we want,” Leaf said after a recent workout in Utah. “We see a team like this — great coach, great system — and I think I’d fit well here, so that’s why I scheduled this one.“
After an unexpectedly dominant first season at Gonzaga, Zach Collins is a potential one-and-done lottery pick. Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee recently profiled the sharp-shooting big man, offering him up as a legitimate option for when the Kings pick at No. 10.
The Sixers will bring in Kyle Kuzma of Utah and Clemson’s Jaron Blossomgame for workouts tomorrow, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes. Kuzma is projected as a late first-round pick by NBADraft.net, while Blossomgame is expected to drop into the second round. Billy Garrett (DePaul), Jalen Moore (Utah State), V.J. Beachem (Notre Dame), and Dominique Hawkins (Kentucky) will also audition for Philadelphia.