It feels like a distant memory now, but the Los Angeles Lakers had the No. 2 pick in what would be the first of three straight drafts in 2015. They had a chance to draft Karl-Anthony Towns.
That didn’t happen. The Minnesota Timberwolves took him with the first overall pick. But as it turns out, Towns had no interest in playing for the Lakers.
John Calipari Explains Why Karl-Anthony Towns Didn’t Want to Play With the Lakers
During his appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show,” which was aggregated by New York Basketball’s X account, Towns’ college coach John Calipari said he told Towns he should have wanted the Lakers. But the All-Star big man wasn’t interested.
“When Karl Towns was getting drafted, the Lakers wanted him, and they were the No. 2 pick. I said ‘You may wanna be the two pick and be in LA.’ … He said, ‘Nah, I’ll wear a coat. I wanna be the No. 1 pick,’ and he enjoyed his time in Minnesota.”
“When Karl Towns was getting drafted the Lakers wanted him at 2
“I said ‘You may wanna be the 2 pick and be in LA’
“He said “Nah I’ll wear a coat. I wanna be the #1 pick’“And he enjoyed his time in Minnesota”
— KAT’s Kentucky coach John Calipari pic.twitter.com/v2rHXNqG0m
— New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) June 19, 2025
Instead, the Lakers used the No. 2 pick on D’Angelo Russell. Russell was a roller coaster during both of his stints in Los Angeles, but it could have been worse. Jahlil Okafor, seen as a can’t-miss prospect at the time, was taken No. 3 and flamed out with the Philadelphia 76ers.
The narrative has long been that players would choose the Lakers if they had the chance. That’s because of the warm weather, the team’s history, and the extra spotlight that comes with playing in L.A.
Towns choosing a different route is admirable for that reason. In hindsight, it’s even more impressive because Minnesota didn’t start winning until Anthony Edwards arrived. The Timberwolves made the playoffs during the 2017-18 season when Jimmy Butler was there, but that situation fell apart fast.
It also makes for a big what-if. If the Lakers had drafted Towns, he might have been good enough to keep them from landing the No. 2 pick in the next two drafts. That would have changed the trade assets they used to acquire Anthony Davis from New Orleans in 2019.
Even wilder is the fact that if Towns had been drafted by the Lakers, he would have started his career playing next to Julius Randle, who the Timberwolves acquired when they traded Towns to the Knicks last offseason.
