Heading into this year’s NBA Summer League, much of the attention for the Los Angeles Lakers was centered on Jalen Hood-Schifino, the No. 17 pick in last month’s draft, and incoming second-year wing Max Christie.
But as play began, big man Colin Castleton attracted attention by consistently showing off an interesting and useful collection of skills.
He averaged 13.4 points, 10.2 rebounds and 4.4 assists a game while shooting 51% from the field during the main summer league in Las Vegas. Suddenly, the undrafted 6-foot-11 University of Florida product is looking like a possible candidate for one of the Lakers’ final two roster spots.
Castleton is on a two-way contract, and he sounds like he is focusing on his craft this summer before training camp starts (h/t Lakers Nation).
“Learning everyday. That’s the biggest thing for me, that’s my mindset. I haven’t really thought about too much into the future, I’m just taking it one day at a time,” Castleton said. “I was focused on killing summer league, and I feel like I did a good job there. Now I can focus on getting ready for training camp and put myself in the right mindset so I can have an opportunity later in the year. That’s my mindset.
“I’ll just go in there with the right approach, wanting to learn from the best players in the world. I’m going to soak up all the information they give me. But I feel like I’m definitely ready to play at this level so we’ll just see how everything falls out, but I’m definitely excited for training camp.
“My competitive spirit is something that drives me, so obviously I feel like I could see myself in that role at some point,” Castleton said. “But it’s not something I worry about or think about. I just let the process happen.
“I’m just working as hard as I can everyday and let the dominos fall the way they fall. Being able to focus on taking it one step at a time, doing what I needed to do in summer league, now getting prepared for training camp and then going from there. I’m just worried about working hard and getting better.”
The Lakers definitely need another viable rotation big man, and if Castleton is as good as his word, he could end up being just that for them this fall.
