Los Angeles Lakers: Robert Upshaw’s Elite Skill Worth A Flier
The 2015 NBA Draft is less than a week away, and as far as the Los Angeles Lakers are concerned, the event is a beacon of path-altering hope.
The Lakers hold the second overall pick in the draft, and most experts believe they will end up with one of three interesting prospects: Kentucky’s Karl-Anthony Towns, Duke’s Jahlil Okafor, or Ohio State’s D’Angelo Russell. Towns and Okafor project as centers in the NBA, while it seems as though Russell is the only guard under serious consideration for a top-two selection.
Whichever route the Los Angeles Lakers take, they will end up adding a worthy talent to their growing collection. If the team can dig deeper, they may be able to double-down on their efforts in this year’s draft.
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The Lakers hold the 27th and 34th overall picks in addition to the more celebrated second overall selection. While it’s never certain what prospects will be available at that juncture of the draft, it’s a fair assumption that a legitimate rotation player will be on the board.
Jimmy Butler, Isaiah Thomas, Draymond Green, Khris Middleton, and Rudy Gobert are all players with recent success that have been taken at pick 27 or later over the past four years. Jordan Clarkson, the Los Angeles Lakers’ first-team All-Rookie guard, was drafted at No. 46 last year.
One player who projects to be available — DraftExpress has him going 37th overall — and is dismissed is former Washington Husky Robert Upshaw. The seven-footer was kicked off the team for violation of team rules, but he’s worth taking late for the Lakers.
Does The Trouble Trump Talent?
Before getting into just how talented this kid is, acknowledging the trouble that has been following him is mandatory.
Upshaw has been kicked out of two college basketball programs (Fresno State and Washington) for violation of team rules; Jeff Goodman of ESPN reported that it was due to failed drug tests.
Lindsay Schnell of Sports Illustrated touched a bit of his troubled past in a piece regarding his dismissal:
"Upshaw has a history of problems — Fresno State tossed him after his freshman year in 2013 following multiple suspensions — and he clearly needs some help. He’d failed drug tests before coming to Seattle and spent time in John Lucas’ treatment center in Houston."
It doesn’t take too much digging into Robert Upshaw’s dirty laundry to understand that he hasn’t had a track record of staying on a successful path throughout his collegiate career. Drugs, personal issues, academic issues — all have been linked to why Upshaw hasn’t been able to live up to his potential quite yet.
“Troubled” is a tough tag to shake in professional sports. Cases like Josh Gordon of the NFL’s Cleveland Browns strike fear into the hearts of general managers who consider investing assets into players who have struggled away from their sport.
But talent opens doors that may have been shut otherwise. Michael Beasley was back in the NBA last year despite multiple incidents involving marijuana, and Ty Lawson remains a prominent player at his position despite a few run-ins with the law over the past couple years. Those are just a few (of many) examples that come to mind.
The true extent of Robert Upshaw’s issues aren’t exactly known. It’s always unsettling to see such talent be dismissed from multiple collegiate programs, but at age twenty-one, he deserves the benefit of the doubt.
In an interview with DraftExpress, Upshaw admitted that he doesn’t expect teams to “hop to him,” and that he has re-evaluated his direction since being dismissed from Washington.
Luckily for Robert Upshaw’s basketball career, he is talented enough to get a chance from somebody; even if his draft prospects have been reduced to being a late-flier.
A Skill Worth Rolling The Dice On
The Lakers are beginning to make over their roster with talented youngsters, and have openings for nearly every role. Even if the team lands Jahlil Okafor as widely expected, they will be in the market for a rim protecting big man to help out the defense. Okafor isn’t a great shot blocker (4.5 block percentage for Duke last season) and Ed Davis, the team’s rejection artist last season, will be a free agent.
Robert Upshaw was the pinnacle of rim protection when he was a member of the Washington Huskies, averaging 4.5 blocks over 19 games. The per-40 minutes numbers had him at an absurd 7.2 blocks per game.
Upshaw’s career 15.4 block-percentage (41 games played) puts him well above other prospects at his position including Kentucky’s Karl-Anthony Towns (11.5 percent in 39 games) and Texas’ Myles Turner (12.3 percent in 34 games).
There are concerns about his overall defense aside from rim protection, but if the Lakers scoop him up at 27 or 34, the one elite skill he does have makes the choice worth it. Upshaw has the physical tools to be a dominant defender — seven-foot frame with a 7’5” wingspan — and he should benefit in that area after being developed at the NBA or D-League level.
For the Lakers, Upshaw could have an instant impact as a rim protector. The team ranked 27th in the NBA in defending the paint, allowing teams to shoot 41.4 percent. They weren’t any better in the restricted area, ranking 26th in the league and allowing opponents to shoot 61.9 percent.
In the late first round, and even more so in the second round, there are few players available that could become legitimate impact players in the NBA. Assuming his draft projection holds, Robert Upshaw will be one of them.
Mitch Kupchak will be hesitant to use all three picks to add rookies to the immediate roster, so it’s possible that the late picks could be used for “draft-and-stash” guys overseas. Instead of stashing a guy in Europe, why not take a swing on a kid like Upshaw?
If he “booms,” the Lakers will have struck pay dirt with a player who could help turn around a bottom-five defense, and a guy that represents amazing value going forward.
If he “busts,” then so what? The contract would be easy to move on from, no harm no foul. Gambling on talent is the luxury of having multiple selections late in the NBA Draft.
The Los Angeles Lakers want to rise back to the top quickly, and hitting the jackpot in the draft would be a fantastic start.
There are plenty of reasons not to roll the dice on Robert Upshaw, but one extremely compelling reason to take the chance.
All statistical support provided by Sports Reference and NBA Stats unless otherwise noted.
Next: 5 Potential Steals In The 2015 NBA Draft
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