The Los Angeles Lakers might have one of the most stable futures in the NBA. They have a strong foundation with MVP candidate Luka Dončić leading the way. Now, it’s just about building the right team around him.
While Year 1 didn’t go exactly according to plan with a brutal first-round exit at the hands of the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Lakers will hope to bounce back in a big way in Dončić’s second year in Los Angeles. The Lakers’ decisions in the 2025 NBA Draft will be a key moment in that journey.
Los Angeles Lakers Try to Solve Key Problem
Los Angeles has two key areas to address around the Slovenian superstar. The first is the center play down low. Last year, Jaxson Hayes was the only serviceable big on the team after the team sent Anthony Davis to the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for Dončić, and he was rendered unplayable in their playoff loss to the Timberwolves.
The other is good perimeter defense. As the Dallas Mavericks proved in the 2023-24 season, a collection of defenders around Dončić is the perfect recipe for success, as their year culminated in an NBA Finals appearance.
The latest mock draft from ESPN experts Jeremy Woo and Jonathan Givony aims to solve the second problem for the Lakers by adding Dink Pate from Mexico City. Still just 19, Pate already has two years of experience playing professional basketball.
After signing with the NBA G League Ignite in 2023, he became the youngest professional basketball player in US history. However, the league was discontinued in 2024, and he quickly signed with the Mexico City Capitanes.
Dallas' finest! 2025 NBA Draft prospect Dink Pate put on a show in his Dallas homecoming game for @CapitanesCDMX. Catch more of Dink's journey on Episode 5 of The Break presented by @TheGeneralAuto.
📺: https://t.co/AH3pS0dZGt pic.twitter.com/eGztG1HcSi
— NBA G League (@nbagleague)
In the short term, he will be a work in progress. “The 18-year-old has dropped impressive glimpses of talent with highlight-reel dunks or acrobatic finishes in the lane, and he has converted 36% of his 3-pointers in a limited sample.”
A five-star prospect coming out of high school, he has the pedigree to develop into a rotational piece, and Los Angeles has been excellent in recent years at finding gems late in the draft.
After trying to enter the draft last year, he will be looking to make a name for himself, and he might be able to carve out a role for himself if he can show consistency in the defensive flashes he’s shown to date.
As a consistent shooter, he should be able to serve in the same mold as a poor man’s Dorian Finney-Smith, providing Dončić with an ideal 3-and-D partner.
