Lottery

Mike Trudell

Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka joined selected reporters on a conference call immediately following L.A.’s unexpected jump from No. 11 to No. 4 in the 2019 NBA Draft Lottery.

Originally holding just a 9.4 percent chance to move into the top four, the Lakers did just that, as forward Kyle Kuzma represented the squad in a purple suit in Chicago, delivering the biggest upward jump of any team. Only the Pelicans and Grizzlies joined the Lakers in moving up (six spots apiece), with eight teams moving down, and three squads remaining in their most likely spot.

Here’s a transcript of the call with Pelinka:

On his immediate reaction:
Pelinka: This is a powerful asset for us. Our focus right now is going to be on doing all we can to have an incredibly successful year next year.

On moving up seven spots, and if that impacts the offseason options to trade or keep the pick:
Pelinka: We had scouting meetings with (Director of Scouting and Assistant GM) Jesse Buss and our scouts, and of course our focus was more around 11, because that’s where the huge probability was resting. But now it shifts, what we can get at four. I will tell you there are some incredibly talented, impact players there that we’re going to study deeply. And then of course we’ll canvas the league and see what value that pick has. But either of those options is an extraordinary win for the franchise … I already talked to Jeanie Buss and she is just thrilled. I think it should really be exciting for our fans. It’s an unexpected event for the Lakers and we’re certainly really blessed.

On if leaping into the Top 4 changes the offseason prospects from what they’d have been at No. 11:
Pelinka: I think it’s an extraordinary shift for us. Top five picks in the draft, if you go back in history and study them, those picks can alter and impact franchises. I think this is a big moment for us. Last year of course we had to go through some hard and difficult things, but this is certainly a great silver lining. I think our dedication is really towards our fans right now, and doing all we can next year to deliver a really special Lakers season for our fans.

On going through these last few weeks and coming out with the No. 4 pick:
Pelinka: I think the biggest motto is just laser focused, head down, do the work. I think that we’ve been trying as an organization to just be methodical and continue a path forward, and doing the work. Our job is to put in the work to make the Lakers a successful organization for our fanbase, and that’s really the course and the path we’ve been on. This is just a burst of good will for us as a franchise. It just gives us some excitement and kind of a nice launching pad going into next year after some of the difficult things we had to go through last year. Our focus right now is just head down, do the work.

On the value of cost-controlled rookie deals, vs. potentially being able to use a pick as a trade asset:
Pelinka: The balance is this: on one side we have we feel like one of the best young cores in the league, and to add the fourth pick in the 2019 Draft to that young core certainly makes it more compelling. And then on the other side, we want to do all we can to have an incredibly successful and winning season next year. And I think this tool can be used to enhance the overall talent on our team in a trade as well. I think we’ll look at a number of different things. The front office will be very methodical in our research and will look at everything. And I think around the draft we’ll get clarity, and then of course we’re excited about July 1 and the flexibility we have there. And the promise of free agency this year. Two really exciting events, the draft and free agency, for us to look forward to and plan around.

On the upheaval of the new lottery odds:
Pelinka: I think it’s a significant step forward, and sort of the NBA and Adam Silver’s vision on lottery reform. I think this is going to shake things up a little bit. Last year, 14 picks went in lock step, there were no changes. This year we had extraordinary movement at the top. I think it is going to leave an impact on the league and how teams play down the stretch, and I think it’ll have a positive impact that will keep the league even more competitive, which is our ultimate aim as a league, to just be a highly competitive league.

On if the team is comfortable adding another young player knowing the urgency to win next year:
Pelinka: I think our goal is to have an extraordinary successful and winning season, but I think if you look around the landscape of the league, there are young players that come in in the top five of the Draft and have an immediate impact and do great things, even in the playoffs. We’re going to have to look really, really hard at the candidates we could select there and see if they can have an immediate impact on winning. There is a precedent around the league where young players have (had success). But again, if we can use (the pick) in a trade that solidifies us in a better way, we’ll look at that as well. I think it’s early in the evaluation process, obviously we just were awarded the top pick, so now begins the fun of dissecting all the different options and making those choices.

On the factors of the rookie scale contracts thinking long term: 
Pelinka: I think that, listen, when you make decisions there are multiple factors … I do think that rookie contracts are extraordinarily valuable, because usually you’re getting extremely talented players at cost-controlled numbers. So that’s one of many factors we’ll look at when deciding to select a player there or using it as a trade asset. But the way we make decisions as a front office is to look at all the factors. I don’t think there’s any one factor that will control it. We’ll look at everything and make a decision for what’s best to have an extraordinarily successful, winning year next year, because that’s what our fans expect, and that’s what we’re going to deliver to them.

On his role for draft purposes, and if his role has changed at all since the last two drafts:
Pelinka: My role as the GM right now is the same as it was when we selected Lonzo Ball with the second pick, which was our last high pick. My role hasn’t changed since then.

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Pelinka Weighs in on Lakers' Lottery Jump

Joey Ramirez

This evening, the Lakers will learn if they hold on to their 2016 first-round draft pick at the NBA Draft Lottery in New York.

Los Angeles has a 55.8 percent chance of keeping its selection, which will be conveyed to Philadelphia if it falls out of the top three as a result of the 2012 trade for Steve Nash.

After finishing the 2015-16 season with the NBA's second-worst record, the Lakers' odds of winning the lottery stand at 19.9 percent. Those odds shift to an 18.8 percent shot at getting the second overall pick and 17.1 percent for the third.

General Manager Mitch Kupchak will be the one making the trip out to New York to represent the Lakers at the NBA Draft Lottery.

Last year, the Lakers sent then-head coach Byron Scott to the lottery, which netted them the No. 2 pick that became D'Angelo Russell. The year before, Showtime Laker James Worthy represented the purple and gold, returning to L.A. with the seventh-overall selection, later used to take Julius Randle.

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Lakers' Odds at the 2016 Lottery

The Lakers are in a unique NBA position in which their head coach also happens to be a former key member of a championship era as a player.

Byron Scott, who ran the wing alongside Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and James Worthy for the Showtime Lakers, just completed his first year as head coach, and is the team's choice to represent Los Angeles at the 2015 NBA Draft Lottery.

Struggling with well over 300 games lost to injury in 2014-15, the Lakers finished with the fourth-worst record in the NBA (21-61). That in term gives them the fourth-best chance to draw a top three selection in the lottery (37.8 percent).

Since the pick is top five protected, L.A. would convey it to Philadelphia (who acquired the pick from Phoenix, who'd originally obtained it from L.A. in the Steve Nash trade) if it lands outside the top five, which has around a 17 percent chance of happening. In such a case, two teams with lesser odds (teams finishing fifth to 14th from the bottom) would jump into the top three, pushing the Lakers to the sixth position.

The Lakers, however, are more than twice as likely to jump from fourth into the top three than they are to lose their selection.

Scott, himself the fourth overall selection out of Arizona State, will be hoping to at least maintain that slot when he represents the Lakers at the lottery.

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Head Coach Byron Scott to Represent Lakers at Lottery

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Sports Illustrated Senior Writer Luke Winn (Luke Winn archive on SI.com) spends quite a bit of time in college basketball arenas, so we enlisted his (expert) services to analyze a number of prospects heading into the June 26 NBA Draft. Below is a transcription of our conversation:

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Prospect Breakdown with Luke Winn

Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak spoke to several reporters via conference call from his office on Wednesday morning, discussing both Tuesday's draft lottery and the team's ongoing coaching search. Below is a transcript of the conversation:

On receiving the seventh pick and if he thinks there is anyone in the draft who can change the face of the franchise at that spot:
I wouldn’t say it was bad luck.  We were hoping to get lucky, but as you know we could have dropped down to number nine, too.  We were hoping to get lucky, or at worst case, stay where we were, but it could have been worse.   As far as what [Boston Celtics Executive] Danny [Ainge] said, that’s up to him.  We think drafting number seven, there is going to be a good player available there.  Maybe Danny is talking more about a guy that changes the face of an organization from the get-go, but you can’t really evaluate these things until years later when you look back on it.  Damian Lillard is a great example.  I don’t think anybody thought walking through the draft that he would turn into the player [he is] as quickly as he did, but looking back on it is a heck of a selection.  We will be able to get a good player, and we are hoping that three or four years from now we can look back on it and he is even a better player than we thought.

On the impact a player selected seventh overall can make:
Well, it depends.  Most of the players in the draft for the last 15 to 18 years have been young, developing players and some of them make a contribution quicker than others.  There are certainly a couple of guys that played more than two years.  There is a kid that played four years that might make a contribution quicker.  I’m not saying he would be someone we would consider or not consider at seven.  My point is, typically – and we have kind of gotten used to it over the years – you do have to work with the younger player and those are the guys that get drafted the highest, whether they are freshman or sophomore, it may take  a year or two.

On if a player selected seventh can be a starter on the Lakers right now:
Right now.  We only four guys under contract right now.

On how the lottery occurring affects the offseason moving forward:
It is another piece of information.  It doesn’t really get us any further along in hiring a coach, but it is another piece of information.  Right now, the day after the lottery, it doesn’t really affect our approach to the offseason beginning July 1st.

On when he will become more immersed in the search for a head coach:
I would say we actually – and I’m sure names will come out within the next couple of days –  but we have started our process and we intend to continue the process in terms of talking to potential coaches.  Whether they are informal or formal interviews, we will do both.  I would not anticipate hiring a coach in the next two or three weeks, but we will interview several, more than three or four, probably.

On if the process of searching for a new coach has begun:
Yes, we have begun.

On the variables the front office is measuring in potential coaching candidates and whether they want to pursue a veteran coach or a young coach:
I think right now, our interviews will be formal in terms of sitting down and talking for a couple of hours, but at some point, we will probably have to sit down and talk a second time.  I think that is where we are right now, at the beginning of the process.  Whether it is a veteran coach or a rookie coach, that is not something we are prepared to comment on right now.

On the talent evaluation process at the NBA Draft Combine:
The combine has really evolved over the years, and probably the most useful information out of the combine is really the interview process and the testing and the medical/physical process.  There is very limited basketball activity, and the guys that did workout, really none of them are “lottery players,” at least last week.  Based on workouts going forward, maybe somebody can jump in there but right now that quality of player, and that is not to say the other guys at the combine that did work out won’t be in the NBA and won’t be drafted perhaps in the first round, but as you know most of the “lottery guys” did not play.

On if they will focus on the drafting in the seventh spot or continue to look at other options:
We started last night calling and trying to set up workouts with probably everybody on our board in the top 15 to 20.  Some of those guys don’t think they are going to be there at seven so they won’t come in.  There is nothing we can do about that.  But some guys that are drafted later, and you may say ‘well why bring in a guy that might go 20?’  Well you never know, number one, and number two, you have the opportunity to develop a relationship with a player.  Why not do it?  So that started last night.

On if the NBA playoffs are a factor in the timing of a possible coaching hire:
Right now it is not a factor, but like I said I don’t see the process ending in the next two or three weeks.  It depends how the process goes.  We may want to open it up and consider other people.

On if other teams head coaching vacancies or hires have impacted the Lakers coaching search thus far:
No.

On if drafting at seven influences whether to keep or trade the pick:
It stands to reason that the higher the pick, the more value it has, but a six pick or a seven pick, which is where we ended up certainly has value.  We will evaluate that between now, the draft and July 1st.

On if there is extra value financially in players on rookie contracts:
Well, that is one of the benefits of having draft picks, that there is a salary scale going forward.  If it is a first-round pick, you can basically pencil in four years of salary.  Then the fifth year, if he signs a one-year deal, you pretty much know that [the player’s salary].  So really you have salary-certainty for five years on a first-round pick.  The second round is a little bit different.  Yeah it [salary certainty] is a factor, but it is not really that much of a factor with us because we have only one pick this year.  Yeah, we know what that pick is going to make, but we still have to field a roster of seven to eight more players.

On if the coach hiring process will be different:
I think, clearly, it will be a longer process for obvious reasons. I assume you are alluding to our last hire, Mike D’Antoni, which really took less than a week.  This process will be considerably longer for a bunch of different reasons.  Number one: We have a lot more time.  Number two: We don’t really know what our team looks like and there is no urgency right now.  It will be a more deliberate process.

On if there are particular offensive and defensive philosophies the Lakers are looking for in a coaching candidate:
I wouldn’t use the word philosophy, but we have a player on our team right now who is proven in this league.  Offensively, he can score and that certainly is a consideration.  Obviously I’m talking about Kobe [Bryant].  He is under contract for two more years and we think he is a very integral part of this team.  We have to make sure that whoever we hire as a coach will really get the most productivity out of him, whether it is scoring the ball or playmaking or the threat that he may score.  That is probably a primary importance right now.

On how he thinks Kobe Bryant will be used offensively in the next two years:
We haven’t seen much of him in the last year.  He has been over here working out and he looks good.  Over the years his game has changed from really a game where he was pretty wild and athletic and at times out-of-control in the early part of his career.  I would say for the last seven or eight years, he has become more deliberate and, of course, he has gotten a little bit older.  I think you will see a lot of him posting up, I think you will see him with the ball in his hands making plays.  [At the] end of games, he is going to have the ball in his hands, he is going to get a call, he is going to make free throws.  The Kobe today is different than the Kobe 15 years ago, and I don’t think that’s a secret.  I think Kobe knows where on the court he will be most effective, whether it is playmaking, being a decoy, or scoring the ball, and I think we know where those places are.

On if hiring a coach currently employed by another team is a possibility:
Why wouldn’t it be a possibility?  We don’t have a timeline.  If we had a timeline for tomorrow or Friday, or the weekend, then I would say that is remote.  But I mentioned earlier, this is going to go on at least two or three weeks.  I’m not anticipating what you just mentioned being a part of the process, but we will just monitor how it plays out with the teams that are out there and see what the playing field provides and make decisions accordingly.

On if a candidate for head coach will need to have previous coaching experience:
Not necessarily, but if I have to say we were leaning towards the type of a coach we would want, I would say there would be experience involved, certainly at some level, but not necessarily.  It’s just too early in the process.

mitch-kupchak-conference-call-transcript

Mitch Kupchak Conference Call Transcript

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mitch-kupchak-conference-call

Mitch Kupchak Conference Call

kupchak-on-the-lottery

Kupchak on the Lottery

The Lakers will pick seventh in June 26th's NBA Draft, as determined by a live drawing on Tuesday night in New York City.

That outcome was the second-most likely situation for the Lakers, who had a 30.5 percent chance of dropping one slot from the sixth position they occupied based on their 2013-14 record.

Heading into the evening, the Lakers had a 21.5 percent chance of jumping into the top three - 1st (6.3 percent); 2nd (7.1 percent); 3rd (8.1 percent) - but only the unlikely Cleveland Cavaliers moved up. In the nine slot ahead of the draft, Cleveland had just a 1.7 percent chance of getting the top pick, but that they did, pushing the other 13 lottery teams down one position by earning the top overall selection.

L.A. was most likely to stay at 6th (43.9%), while the chances of falling to 8th (4.0%) or 9th (0.1%) were remote.

The franchise's hope, like every other team in the lottery, was to move up in to the top three, and they sent James Worthy with a few good luck charms towards that end.

Rewind back to the 1982 NBA Draft, when the Lakers were represented by legendary broadcaster and front office executive Chick Hearn, just three years after Dr. Jerry Buss purchased the team. They were armed with the No. 1 pick, thanks to the dealings of then-general manager Bill Sharman, and used it to take future Hall of Famer Worthy.

So tonight, there was Big Game James armed with bobbleheads of Chick Hearn and Dr. Buss, with Bill Sharman on his mind. And while Worthy and L.A.'s hopes weren't realized, the Lakers will get a very good player at No. 7 in a draft considered to be the deepest in several years.

General Manager Mitch Kupchak will weigh on the position on Wednesday morning; until then, we leave you with the history of the No. 7 slot since the lottery began in 1985:

No. 7 SELECTIONS
2013: Ben McLemore
2012: Harrison Barnes
2011: Bismack Biyombo
2010: Greg Monroe
2009: Stephen Curry
2008: Eric Gordon
2007: Corey Brewer
2006: Randy Foye
2005: Charlie Villanueva
2004: Luol Deng
2003: Kirk Hinrich
2002: Nene Hilario
2001: Eddie Griffin
2000: Chris Mihm
1999: Richard Hamilton
1998: Jason Williams
1997: Tim Thomas
1996: Lorenzen Wright
1995: Damon Stoudamire
1994: Lamond Murray
1993: Bobby Hurley
1992: Walt Williams
1991: Luc Longley
1990: Lionel Simmons
1989: George McCloud
1988: Tim Perry
1987: Kevin Johnson
1986: Roy Tarpley
1985: Chris Mullin