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Los Angeles Lakers: Should They Take Emmanuel Mudiay?

By Jackson Sanders

Mar 18, 2014; Dallas, TX, USA; Emmanuel Mudiay of Prime Prep Academy poses for a portrait. He is a finalist for the USA Today Player of the Year Award. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 18, 2014; Dallas, TX, USA; Emmanuel Mudiay of Prime Prep Academy poses for a portrait. He is a finalist for the USA Today Player of the Year Award. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports /
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Mar 18, 2014; Dallas, TX, USA; Emmanuel Mudiay of Prime Prep Academy poses for a portrait. He is a finalist for the USA Today Player of the Year Award. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 18, 2014; Dallas, TX, USA; Emmanuel Mudiay of Prime Prep Academy poses for a portrait. He is a finalist for the USA Today Player of the Year Award. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports /

 Emmanuel Mudiay Is A Risky Call For The Lakers

The Lakers are talent-starved.

It feels strange to type that sentence when considering a team with such star-studded history, but it’s true. The Lakers have a keeper in Jordan Clarkson, and a player that will presumptively join him in making up the team’s core in Julius Randle.

That’s a far cry from where the team was even three seasons ago, when they featured two former-MVPs (Steve Nash, Kobe Bryant) and three former All-Stars (Dwight Howard, Metta World Peace, Pau Gasol) as their starting five.

Emmanuel Mudiay would certainly add talent to the roster. But, so would any of Karl-Anthony Towns, Jahlil Okafor, D’Angelo Russell or Justise Winslow.

Mudiay could be the second coming of Derrick Rose. But, Okafor could become a DeMarcus Cousins-like presence in the post. Russell could be next Brandon Roy.

And either of those players would blossom at a position that the Lakers desperately need.

There’s no desperation at point guard for the Lakers, in fact the position is one of the bright spots of the roster. If the team takes Mudiay at No. 2 overall, and he flourishes, the rebuild could be over much sooner than anyone expects.

Only if the Lakers’ brass truly believes that Mudiay is a guaranteed superstar should they even consider him as the second overall pick. A wrong call would set the franchise back years — a potential crushing blow to come from such a promising summer.

Selecting Emmanuel Mudiay at No. 2 — essentially calling that he will emerge into the next superstar point guard in the NBA — is a bold move. It would be asking to cash-in on the lottery twice.

Surely, the team must know that Lady Luck doesn’t stay long.

Statistical support provided by Basketball-Reference unless otherwise noted.

Next: NBA: 5 Playoff Teams Facing Franchise-Altering Summers

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