The Lakers hosted their first draft workout for six prospects in the upcoming NBA Draft Tuesday afternoon. The list included:
- DeVante’ Jones (Michigan)
- Jeriah Horne (Tulsa)
- Kaodirichi Akobundu-Ehiogu (UT Arlington)
- Jamaree Bouyea (San Francisco)
- Jordan Usher (Georgia Tech)
- Grant Golden (Richmond)
While the Purple and Gold do not currently have a pick in this year’s draft, the team could conceptually acquire a second-round pick or shift a focus to undrafted free agents, which has boded well for the Lakers in very recent history with the signings of Austin Reaves and Mac McClung.
Jamaree Bouyea noted Reaves’ inspiration to players like himself, who may not be the talk of the town but can make an impact on a team in this league.
“I think every year there is a diamond in the rough somewhere that pops out on a team,” Bouyea said. “Reaves is one of those guys that came in and maybe surprised the organization. Just knowing that possibility of being underrated or an unseen guy who can still sprout in the NBA, survive, and have success is very inspiring.”
In his final season (fifth year) at San Francisco, Bouyea led the Dons in points per game (17.3) and assists (4.0), and helped USF get back into the NCAA tournament following a 24-year drought. The 6’2 guard scored a career high 36 points in an overtime loss to 7-seed Murray State during the opening round of the tournament.
Bouyea earned First-Team All-WCC twice (2021, 2022) and started in 105 of 160 career games, including all 93 games in his last three seasons.
When asked what he could bring into the NBA, Bouyea emphasized his ability to get up and down the court and play two-way basketball as his strong suits.
Bouyea is familiar with the area as USF would play road conference games at Loyal Marymount and Pepperdine. Jordan Usher is equally familiar as he played two seasons at USC before transferring to Georgia Tech to finish out his college career.
The Atlanta-area product was a bundle of energy during his interview with the media, as he expressed his satisfaction in, not only his workout but having just graduated from Georgia Tech last weekend.
“I’ve got nothing on my mind but basketball and getting to chase my dreams,” Usher noted. “Saturday was superb. I got to walk across the stage, make my mom proud, and that was something I wanted to do for a while. Today, I felt like I got to show a good sense of myself, have fun, and workout for an amazing team.”
In three seasons at Georgia Tech, Usher averaged 14.8 points and 6.5 rebounds in almost 32 minutes per game. At 6’7, 220 pounds, Usher believes his playing style is similar to that of Draymond Green and Dillon Brooks.
“I feel like I can slide around on defense,” Usher said. “I can eat up minutes at an early time to give someone a break, slide around on a good offensive player, and play some small ball or even play bigger on smaller guard. I feel like I can give a lot of energy, enthusiasm, and good basketball plays to a team that needs it."
The team will hold several pre-draft workouts as the offseason rolls on.