Overview
- Multiple outlets on Sunday, June 21, 2026, reported that league chatter has the Lakers likely to use the 25th overall pick on a center who finishes at the rim or an athletic wing who can defend and shoot threes.
- Kentucky big man Jayden Quaintance and UConn’s Tarris Reed Jr. are the names most often linked to L.A., with Quaintance’s torn ACL and limited minutes at Kentucky the key medical risk that could make him slip to the late first round.
- Scouts and reports say the Lakers have also scouted wings Dailyn Swain and Isaiah Evans, watched Spain-based guard Sergio de Larrea, and brought Purdue’s Braden Smith in for a workout that impressed the team despite his likely second-round projection.
- Decision-making around the pick is being shaped by bigger roster moves because LeBron James is an unrestricted free agent, Austin Reaves is expected to opt out, and the club holds additional first-rounders that cannot be traded until after the draft.
- A successful late-first-round selection matters under the current collective bargaining rules because a cheap, controllable rookie deal can add athletic depth more affordably than a veteran signing and may not be ready to start right away if the player requires rehab.