Wagner to Lakers at 25
In recent years the Lakers have found Jordan Clarkson, Larry Nance Jr and Kyle Kuzma all in the late first round, and all of whom have proven to be serviceable-to-good NBA rotation players (if you disregard Clarkson's Finals appearance) - so whatever else we've done wrong, we've been pretty damn good at mining talent from the draft. If the Laker scouts saw something in Mo they liked, there's probably some damn good reasons why.
If? They saw the same things we all did. An ultra skilled, 7 footer with crafty offensive moves, great 3pt shooting, solid handle for a big, high bball IQ and a love for the game. They saw him improve every year, pack on muscle, work hard on his deficiencies and play the game with an edge, high energy and an enthusiasm unknown to mankind. They saw him being developed by an elite coach who taught him modern perimeter oriented basketball.
Awww, so cool. I wish him well in LA (but Great Lakes > Lakers).
Can anyone explain why Jalen Brunson dropped so far?
He's older and not that explosive compared to the other PGs in the draft, and the NBA is a gauntlet of athletic point guards and teams that punish switches.
FWIW I think he's a steal and will end up with a lengthy NBA career as a mostly bench guy but a really useful one.
Congrats Mo! I legitimately haven't been more excited and thrilled to watch the growth of a young athlete and student at Michigan than this man, for a LOOONG time. Can't wait to see him destroy those NBA divas!
Congrats Mo!!! Well deserved! Hail Michigan Hail Beilein!
Great landing spot. I'm not sure what in the crap Chauncey Billups is talking about comparing him to Memo Okur.
Don't know if it's a good fit basketball-wise or not, but at least he's escaping the damn Rust Belt. Good luck out there, Mr. Wagner.
Mo seems like such a good guy. I hope the LA scene doesn’t ruin him. I think he’s bigger than that. Best wishes to him. I hope he has a great career.
I think Luke Walton is the perfect coach for him. He understands the value of off-ball movement and shooting, and won't ask Mo to do the things he isn't good at. He's basically a young NBA version of Beilein.
As a Lakers fan, this pleases me greatly! Congrats to Mo and here's hoping for a long and successful run as a Laker.
Ausgezeichnet!!
According to Forbes, Moe's 2 year CBA rookie contract is for $3,837,480
He seems to be the rare player who both made a good decision to stay (last year he was projected as a late second-round pick) and made a good decision to leave, this year.
As an avid Laker fan, I don't necessarily like the pick in a vacuum. However, considering desired roster construction (I.E. the potential to add Lebron and/or PG and/or Kawhi), I very much understand adding Mo as a floor spacing//off-ball shooter.
He's going to get some sweet looks once LeBron and Paul George get there.
IF is the operative word, I'm not 100% sold that either will come at this point. While the positive talk is focused on his ability to stretch the floor from distance and provide driving lanes for guys like Ingram and Ball (potentially Lebron, PG, Kawhi), the bigger concern in my opinion is defense. Mo simply isn't capable of defending the perimeter in the league on switches and you better believe opposing coaches are going to pick on him relentlessly. He's also a poor post defender that doesn't offer rim protection. To be candid, you simply can't hide him on defense at this point.
So for me it boils down to whether his offense can compensate for his defense. I think in a bench role matching up against second string opposing centers, he has the potential to be a net plus if he's surrounded by the right personnel.
I've shit on the NBA for years, but with Mo going to the Lakers and them building a superteam, I may have to become a total bandwagon fan. Embrace it!
Awesome for Mo, deserves the first round pick. Now I have to stomach cheering for the Lakers though...
Not a big NBA fan but pretty excited about this. Wagner already knows how to win at Staples Center, so this is a natural transition for him :)