Would You Rather Have The 3rd Pick Or Lose It?

You get the most out of the #2 pick by drafting Ingram or Simmons, or by trading it for a true star, which doesn't seem likely to me. So Ingram or Simmons it is. 2 man draft, unless some incredibly huge unforeseen red flags come up for either one of them.

 

Pelton and Ford are some of the worst analysts out there and they frequently write for content. I stopped subscribing to ESPN Insider because their stuff was wordy with little actual content. Their writing isn't good enough quality to justify spending money on it when there's plenty of people I can read for free that do as good if not a better job (Ding comes to mind).

Bender being the next Porzingis is something to investigate. There is a chance that Bender really is that good of a player. He's got great length, good passing ability, a good head on his shoulders, and he's got a solid defensive principles. But you know who else has that with more exposure, proven track record, and is even further along? Ingram and Simmons.

We should have Bender come in for a workout just in case he blows it out of the water. If he can do that and earn a second workout, but he's going to have to show something tremendous because Ingram and Simmons already have.

 

Because of Ingram's wingspan, he will essentially play about as big as Bender. So who is the better athlete, who is the better shooter, who has done it against better competition? The answer to all those questions is Ingram. Ingram isn't like 3-4 years older either. There is virtually zero reason to consider Bender. Could he end up being better? Maybe. But at this moment with the information we have, Ingram is better in every single facet. Because some tall white Euro came out of the gate (and promptly fell off a cliff which no one talks about) last season, Bender is going to go top 5. He would probably be floating around the teens if Zinger didn't happen because people would be thinking Bargnani.

 

I agree with all that. It was kind of my point. The only difference is I'm willing to give the kid a chance. I'm not nearly as skeptical as all of you and if the kid dominates a workout, he should be given a fair shot.

Remember this time last year D'Angelo dominated a workout with LA and cemented himself ahead of Okafor who was a lock up until that point. Give him a chance and if he takes it, okay. If not, then we got what we expected.

 

There is a difference though. Russell was a dominant college player as well and many people thought he was potentially the best player in the draft. Let's say Ingram SUCKS during the workout and Bender crushes it. Are 2 bad hours from Ingram and two stellar hours from Bender enough to completely override all the actual game footage we have of these guys? I guess my fear would be Bender does blow us away and based on that tiny sample size, the Lakers FO gets cute and takes a risk on him. Russell over Okafor is completely different. Russell was actually given the highest chance of becoming a superstar by FiveThirtyEight. Okafor was being question leading up to the draft as being a player who might be coming into a league that is quickly moving away from post centers. NO ONE is saying anything but Simmons/Ingram...and everyone else. Because of how lopsided this all is, you don't give Bender a chance. Don't let him sneak into your head with an incredible workout.

 

We're playing with the timeline a bit here. We are right now leading up to the draft so any news that pops up can happen any time over the next month. We might be ahead of the game on it, who knows?

All I'm saying is the kid deserves a workout just like Jaylen Brown, Kris Dunn, and Jakob Poetl. They deserve a chance to make their case. Heck I think the Lakers even interviewed Ellison the Power Forward kid.

I don't think one workout changes things. The Lakers didn't let one workout change/make up their mind on Okafor vs. Russell. It took two separate workouts in two separate settings along with multiple interviews and extensive background checks. If the Lakers do all that and find Bender (or Brown or Poetl) to be the best prospect, I'll accept that decision. The Lakers' scouting department has been their only consistent strong point for years now.

That being said, I fully expect it to be Ingram in a Laker uniform.