Lakers and Kings Dictate 2017 NBA Draft Of Philadelphia 76ers

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May 17, 2016; New York, NY, USA; Los Angeles Lakers general manager Mitch Cupchak represents his team during the NBA draft lottery at New York Hilton Midtown. The Philadelphia 76ers received the first overall pick in the 2016 draft. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports /

Lakeside Draft

The Los Angeles Lakers are in as much of a rebuild mode as the Philadelphia 76ers, but they are much more aggressive on short cutting via free agency. They also landed the second pick in the 2016 NBA draft, which they used to select small forward Brandon Ingram. Since the 76ers selected first, it was their choice as to which player would better fit the 76ers, a choice they felt was Ben Simmons.

Brandon Ingram is a potential star in the NBA, a player with a solid arsenal of shots and an ability to make his own moves to the basket. But he will be a rookie this year, and with the Los Angeles Lakers reassembling a roster on the fly will have better years ahead of him.

The second player selected is 7-foot-1 240 pound center Ivica Zubac, a player who rose in the ranking despite playing all of 104 minutes of organized basketball. He was a teammate of 76ers Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, and his offense was basically within five feet of the basket. Defensively, he has the right size and shape to defend the basket as a rim protecting center, but he has yet to develop that part of his game. While Zubac will likely make the roster of the team in need of center help, he will begin the season on the bench and will be gradually increased in minutes as he becomes more NBA ready.

With the retirement of Kobe Bryant, the addition of Ingram and Zubac barely rounds the edge of Bryant’s absence. If the team hopes to improve on its 17-65 record, it will need to do so in Free Agency

Next: Lakeside Free Agency