Showtime Basketball / NBA (DR)
If Victor Wembanyama is particularly awaited in the NBA, the Lakers are monitoring his dossier with some concern. Unlike the competition, they have to do everything to not finish high in the draft … Otherwise we would see a heist from hell.
Where will Victor Wembanyama land when he gets drafted to the NBA? That’s the whole thing, as the French pivot is coveted. His athletic profile and coaching background attracts a lot of people, especially among the lower-level franchises. Wherever he plays, the Mets center should have an immediate impact once he enters the big league, that seems certain.
However, we already know who he shouldn’t play for from 2023-24, namely the Lakers. Because the Californians no longer really hold the choice of the first round next June, after the exchange of roundsAnthony Davis three years ago. New Orleans had then negotiated a trade for their 2023 pick, allowing them to draft instead of LA if the latter finished higher in the draft than the Pelicans. A great fear then continues to grow in the City of Angels, according to Marc Stein:
Wembanyama drafted by the Pels thanks to the Lakers?
There is already a palpable fear inside (what I still like to call) Staples Center that the Purple & Gold are heading into a June draft in which the New Orleans Pelicans are gleefully positioned to make a pick trade with LA , a condition included in Anthony Davis’ trade in July 2019.
In the short term, the trade for The Brow was a blessing for the Angelinos as they took the title a few months later in the Orlando bubble. Only the results have since been very disappointing, as NOLA begins to wreak havoc with its rebuilt team around Zion Williamson. Adding the V to the roster would be incredible, enough to make Louisiana fans salivate:
Pelicans fans think of a Zion-Victor backcourt pic.twitter.com/2qxKJBzzew
— Horny Tyler Herro Club ⎷ (@HoesLuvHerro) November 14, 2022
Pelicans fans think of a Zion-Victor racket
So BI, CJ, Dyson Daniels and Wemby could be the end result of trading AD😭 Pels shaved
— DeeboWrld (parody account) (@DeeboWrld_Burna) November 14, 2022
So Brandon Ingram, CJ McCollum, Dyson Daniels and Wemby could be the end result of the trade for AD 😭 The Pels managed
If the Lakers don’t improve on their record quickly, they could very well put the Pelicans in a favorable position to select Victor Wembanyama in June 2023. It would be a real knockout blow for the management of the California franchise, despite the 2020 title.
