The final 2024 NBA mock draft from ESPN has Zach Edey to the Lakers

Happy NBA Draft Day, friends.

While we’re all wondering who will go No. 1 to the Atlanta Hawks or if the Los Angeles Lakers will draft Bronny James or not, there’s one of the better players in college hoops last season who is an intriguing sleeper: Zach Edey.

In the final NBA mock draft from our Bryan Kalbrosky, he’s got the Purdue center going to the Portland Trail Blazers at No. 14. And in the final ESPN mock before the real thing starts Wednesday night, Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo have him going to the aforementioned Lakers at No. 17.

Here’s their reasoning:

The Lakers likely will explore the trade market to see what type of veterans they can add to give LeBron James, Anthony Davis and new coach J.J. Redick the best chance of competing this season, with NBA players such as Dejounte Murray and Collin Sexton being batted around by rival teams as possible targets. Should the Lakers elect to stand pat, picking a plug-and-play center like Edey would make a lot of sense.

Davis is coming off his best season in years from a durability standpoint but will likely need to have his minutes managed, and he has always preferred to play alongside another big man. Enter Edey, who can bring the Lakers some of the physicality they’ve been lacking inside the paint at times, with L.A. finishing as the NBA’s worst offensive-rebounding team last season.

Interesting! Make sure to check out our final NBA mock draft, along with the first-round order ahead of Wednesday night.