On Tuesday morning, the Lakers welcomed another set of prospects, continuing a steady march towards the NBA Draft in June, and the subsequent free agency period.
- Brison Gresham (Texas Southern)
- Terry McGowens (Nebraska)
- Omari Moore (San Jose State)
- Lester Quinones (Memphis)
- Will Richardson (Oregon)
- Trevion Williams (Purdue)
The players, ranging in age from 21.5 years (Quinones) to 22.7 (Richardson), all have dreams of being drafted. The Lakers don’t have either their first or second round picks this season, due to previous trades … but the option to trade for a pick is often in play.
Furthermore, L.A. have utilized undrafted players like Alex Caruso and Austin Reaves in the recent past, bringing the players into the Summer League setting, then putting them on two-way contracts until each eventually earned a spot on the full squad.
“Most definitely, one of the greatest things recently is the two-way contracts, because a lot of kids gets stuck thinking they should leave college, or get bad information from their agent or their parents, and they don’t necessarily get drafted,” said Richardson. “Before they were just in a grey area, but now with two ways, or (players) getting pulled up from the G-League with Covid going on, people missing games, injuries … it gives kids a second chance or a better chance when the might not have gotten that chance before. It’s a positive.”
Richardson, an All-Pac-12 Second Team selection, averaged 14.1 points, 3.7 boards, 3.6 assists and 1.3 steals at Oregon.
“The workout was pretty good; great group of kids here,” he said. “The coaching staff was really involved got us going. What I bring to the table is I’m an older guy; leadership, I’m vocal, I know how to play the right way. I know all the reads, how to keep my teammates going in the game. On the court, I do a little bit of everything. I can play on the ball, off the ball, I can really shoot, I can dribble, pass … I’m an average defender.”
Richardson shared what L.A.’s coaching staff, including G-League head coach Miles Simon, relayed while running the workouts.
“Just being competitive and vocal,” he said. “Being who you are, not trying to be something more than what you are. Doing your role, playing it the best. If you’re a great defender, go out there and defend every play. The most important part is just be in shape; that’s the thing that’s going to help you the most, especially going through this (draft) process flying city to city, place to place, eating late … just taking care of your body (is key).”
Richardson said his Lakers workout was his seventh or eighth of the pre-draft process. Seven? Eight? His uncertainty reflects just how laborious the process is. And while the workouts may be taxing for players like Richardson that are performing for several teams, the dream of being drafted conquers all.
“The mental side can creep in, but when this is your livelihood and all you’ve ever dreamed of, that really doesn’t get to you,” said Richardson. “It’s more the fatigue part, like your legs start getting tired. Some day you might jump this high, the next day you’ll be like, ‘Man, I’m tired.’ Maybe you’re in L.A. one day, Orlando the next. But as long as you know this is what you want to do with your life, this is really what you want, it shouldn’t be a big problem.”
“This is what you ask for,” said Trevion Williams, a Purdue big man who put up 12.0 points and 7.4 blocks, after completing his sixth of 12 or 13 workouts. “I put in the work and I prepared myself for this. It’s been a little tough, with workouts back to back, but the bright side is, you get to see different places. That’s the upside. You just gotta find a way to have fun with your work.”
There are similarities with how many teams run the workouts, but L.A.’s stood out in certain ways.
“One thing that stood out today is they emphasized the way we guarded the ball screen,” Richardson explained. “We iced on the side, then we sent weak or to the left (on) middle ball screens. That was interesting right there.”
Regardless of the directives, most of the players are looking to accomplish the same goal.
“We all show up for the same reason,” Williams summarized. “To compete, and show people why we belong.”