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Everyone knows the Los Angeles Lakers gave up a massive haul of young talent (Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, and Josh Hart) when they traded for Anthony Davis.
But the draft capital was even more damaging. They surrendered the fourth overall pick in the 2019 NBA draft, an unprotected first-round draft pick in 2022, the right to swap first-round draft picks in 2023, and then yet another unprotected first-round draft pick in 2024.
Los Angeles probably figured thought they would be golden with Davis and LeBron James, and it seems that Lakers’ president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka never considered “protecting” those picks as insurance just in case things didn’t work out.
That was a mistake the Pelicans weren’t going to make. Last offseason, New Orleans executive David Griffin used the Lakers’ 2022 pick to land Jonas Valančiūnas from Memphis. But he threw top-10 protection on the pick, the Lakers had a terrible season, and now there is a 99.6% chance the Pels keep the pick this year.
Griffin wasn’t reinventing the wheel. According to The Ringer, a protected draft pick has been involved in “every draft since 1996” and “every trade deadline since 2008.” It’s a box Pelinka’s predecessor, Mitch Kupchak, made sure to check.
When the Lakers traded Sasha Vujacic to the Nets, the former Lakers executive worked out protections on the first-rounder. Now with the Hornets, Kupchak is still including “heavy protections” when he includes picks in his trades.
But protecting picks is clearly not something Pelinka values, and it cost them. Although it’s unlikely a rookie would help Los Angeles’ woes next year, even just having their draft pick would go a long way as a trade chip to make other improvements to their roster.
The Tip-Off
Phoenix got laughed off the court during their final game of the season, and things somehow went from bad to worse the following day.
Not only did Patrick Beverley make a mockery of Chris Paul, but the team also had an ill-advised social media post that somehow made matters even worse. Our own Andy Nesbitt shared his thoughts:
“Here’s some advice for other teams that might suffer incredibly embarrassing season-ending losses – after it happens just be quiet. For a while. Don’t write up any notes to the fans or anything. And if you do write up a note, throw it out. Do not put it out on social media. It is more than OK – in fact, it’s encouraged! – to just sit in your feelings about the loss and let time do its thing. These notes only make things worse. Trust me.”
I’d go ahead and take Andy’s advice on this kind of stuff. He knows what he is talking about, and he’s only trying to protect you!
One to Watch
Heat (-2.5, -145) vs. Celtics (+115), O/U 203.5, 8:30 PM ET
The oddsmakers have moved the line to make it even more in favor of Miami, which makes sense. They had the best record in the East during the regular season, and they’ve got Boston coming down to Florida for this one.
In this series, I’ll have trouble betting against Jayson Tatum. Miami, however, had more rest and a much easier opponent in the conference semifinals. They are more injured, though, so it’s not fair to say they have fresher legs.
Who’s in and out?
— Celtics: Marcus Smart (foot) is questionable against Miami
— Heat: Kyle Lowry (hamstring) is out against Boston; PJ Tucker (calf), Max Strus (hamstring), Gabe Vincent (hamstring), Caleb Martin (ankle) are questionable
— Warriors: Otto Porter (foot) is questionable against Dallas; Andre Iguodala (neck) is out until late May
Shootaround
— NBA draft lottery odds: Full breakdown for each team hopeful for No. 1
— 7 fascinating LeBron facts we found out after his Twitter Q&A
— Rookie Wire’s top performers from NBA G League Elite Camp Day 1
— HoopsHype’s NBA draft workout tracker: Where are prospects going?
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