When the NBA Lottery went down, Knicks fans weren't too happy as their wretched (and second-worst in the league) record wasn't quite enough to land them the second overall pick. It's just been that kind of year for them. Anyway, the East Coast's loss was the West Coast's gain as the Lakers (and their fourth worst overall record) got lucky and grabbed the second overall choice. Some mock drafts had them taking Duke's Jahlil Okafor with this pick, others had Ohio State'sD'Angelo Russell. But now we no longer need mock drafts since tonight is, you know, the real draft, and the Lakers finally answered everyone's guess by taking Russell.
Last season, Russell was named a First-Team All-American for the Buckeyes with averages of 19.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, 5.0 assists, and 1.6 steals per night. It's likely that the Lakers taking of the 19-year-old, 6'5" guard is an indication of them feeling they have a pretty damn good shot of landing a big man (such as Kevin Love or LaMarcus Aldridge).
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