2017 NBA Draft: 3 bold predictions for Los Angeles Lakers

Lakers watch Markelle Fultz fall into their laps

It all starts with the Boston Celtics pulling off a shocker with the selection of Lonzo Ball. It seems crazy considering the UCLA point guard hasn’t shown much interest in going to Boston (via ESPN’s Chris Forsberg), but for some reason, Danny Ainge deems him the right choice at No. 1 overall.

That means the Lakers get the opportunity to land the 2017 draft class’ top talent, Markelle Fultz. And boy, what a start for Magic’s tenure as the shot-caller in Los Angeles. He lucks his way into one of the top guard prospects in recent memory, and doesn’t even have to give up any additional assets to do so.

Although most folks agree that Fultz is the top talent this year, there are a select few who prefer Ball. He’s more of a true facilitator, and may offer slightly more efficiency from a shooting standpoint. While Ball obviously has his fair share of red flags, maybe Ainge sees something in the former Bruin that others don’t.

Either way, it gets the Lakers their superstar in the making. That doesn’t necessarily mean they need to trade D’Angelo Russell away either. Instead, Los Angeles can bump D-Lo down to the 2-spot, inserting Fultz as the on-ball guard. Jordan Clarkson then returns to the sixth man role in which he shined this past season.

This is obviously an unlikely scenario, but not impossible. These are bold predictions after all, and taking Ball at No. 1 would be a bold move by the Celtics.