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NBA Mock Draft Roundup: Lakers looking for athleticism
The Lakers need athleticism and centers, so it’s no surprise mock drafts have them filling those holes in the roster.
At his exit interview, one of the edicts from President of Basketball Operations Rob Pelinka is that the Lakers needed lob threats and wings with athleticism.
It’s the desire of every NBA team to find athleticism on the wings and at the center position. The surest way teams can find that, then, is in the NBA Draft.
With just over a day left before the first round of the 2026 NBA Draft, the projected Lakers’ picks are mostly either lob threats or wings with athleticism, which shouldn’t be a surprise. There is also one name that is coming up with increasing regularity as well.
Lakers Rumors: Quaintance, Reed, De Larrea, Smith, Prospects
Rival teams expect the Lakers to draft a center with the 25th overall pick, according to Jake Fischer of The Stein Line, who reports in his latest Substack story that the team has been connected to Kentucky’s Jayden Quaintance and UConn’s Tarris Reed.
Quaintance is ranked 22nd on ESPN’s big board, while Reed comes in at No. 33.
Quaintance was once a projected lottery pick, but some NBA teams are concerned with the status of his knee after he tore his ACL as a freshman with Arizona State in 2024/25, Fischer writes. The 6’9″ big man, who doesn’t turn 19 until next month, was limited to just four appearances with Kentucky in ’25/26.
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Lakers 2026 NBA Draft: Who They Take at No. 25
The Los Angeles Lakers will step to the podium with the No. 25 pick when the 2026 NBA Draft opens Tuesday.
After a season that ended with a second-round sweep at the hands of the Oklahoma City Thunder, the front office has a clear mandate: Build around Luka Doncic, and start by addressing the frontcourt and shooting that the playoffs exposed. The challenge is that the late first round is notoriously hard to predict, and this year is no exception. The names mock drafters have attached to the Lakers have shifted as the draft has drawn closer, a sign that the team’s plan at No. 25 is far from settled with the clock ticking down.
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