Did Los Angeles Lakers Promise Josh Jackson They Are Drafting Him?
Things are getting pretty interesting before the draft.
The Los Angeles Lakers still have a little over a week to choose between Lonzo Ball, Josh Jackson and De'Aaron Fox, but recent reports are suggesting that they may have already made their decision.
John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 was the first to report that a team might have already promised Jackson that they're selecting him in next week's draft. He said that the Philadelphia 76ers could be the team that were picking Jackson, but he also added that the promise likely came from the Lakers.
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"In draft parlance, a 'promise' means that a team tells a player and his agent that they'll select him in their draft slot if he's available, so connecting the dots with the context of Gambadoro's connections with the Suns, this likely means that's why Phoenix thinks this is why Jackson hasn't worked out for them," Harrison Faigen said in his report for Silver Screen & Roll.
That's a good observation. If Jackson's not interested in working out for the Suns (picking fourth), then a team selecting before them may have already told him they want him.
To make things more interesting, ESPN's Jeff Goodman has reported that Jackson has canceled his workout with the Boston Celtics (picking first), and several reporters say the Lakers are bringing Jackson back for a second workout.
With Ball reportedly out of shape during his workout, the Lakers may have decided to change directions and target Jackson instead. Of course, this may be a smokescreen to confuse other teams.
In any case, Jackson is a special player and he should give the team that selects him a big boost on defense.
Teams will always deny that they have made a promise to draft a player, but people outside the organization will never know what's really going on behind closed doors.
