Getty Lakers draft target Keldon Johnson of the Kentucky Wildcats dunks the ball against the Auburn Tigers during the 2019 NCAA Basketball Tournament Midwest Regional.
With the draft lottery coming up on Tuesday, May 13th, the Lakers are desperate to jump up higher than their currently projected 10th or 11th position. Coming off a tough first year with LeBron James and having parted ways with their coach before going on one of the more public coaching searches of all time. While it wasn’t pretty, the Lakers wound up with Frank Vogel, whose attempts to modernize his offense for today’s NBA didn’t do so hot in his run with the Orlando Magic.
Lakers 2019 NBA Draft Target: Keldon Johnson A Great Fit
With the Lakers’ biggest need being outside shooting from the two guard position, Keldon Johnson could step in and prove to offer some help immediately. Shooting 38% from three to go along with explosive athleticism for the position, Johnson has the physical tools to be a high-end ‘three and d’ wing player at some point. Especially with both Reggie Bullock and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope hitting free agency, drafting Johnson could potentially offer a cheaper alternative to either on the open market.
Johnson has good size at 6’6″ and should he develop as a defender, would fit in nicely as a long-term piece alongside Lonzo Ball in the backcourt. Johnson was a tenacious defender at the college level and if that same bulldog mentality can translate to the big leagues, the Lakers might be rolling out the best defensive backcourt in the league before too long.
Keldon Johnson Kentucky Stats & Lates Mock Drafts
While projected to be a possible lottery pick, his exact spot is relatively unknown and fluctuates heavily. Our own mock draft has him going off the board down at 21 while NBAdraft.net has Johnson going off the board much earlier at 14th. ESPN’s Jonathan Givony is also not too high on Johson, having him set to go 22nd off the board.
Johnson averaged 13.5 points per game during his freshman campaign to go with 5.6 rebounds, 1.6 assists, and 0.8 steals per game. One of the key cogs to Kentucky’s defense and reliable deep ball artist on a team in dire need of shooters, Johnson showed he has a nose for basketball and looks to be more than capable of being able to see his game translate over to the next level.