Anthony Davis, the hottest super center in the active league, not only averaged 28.1 points, 11.1 rebounds, 2.6 blocks and 1.5 steals per game in his peak season, but also helped the Lakers win the championship in 2020. However, Davis was not on the Lakers until 19 years, and he never left the Pelicans who drafted him, where he led the team to the playoffs as the team leader.
In order to get the star of such a team, the Lakers can be said to have paid a lot of price at that time, not to mention giving three first-round picks in a row, and sending away six super potential new stars. Now, five years have passed, how are the six superpotential rising stars developing, and whether they match the value of Anthony Davis, let's take a look today.
1. Lonzo Bauer
As a "ball brother" who became famous before entering the league, Lonzo J. Ball was selected by the Lakers in the 2017 NBA draft, and in his debut season, Ball averaged 10.2 points, 6.9 rebounds, 7.2 assists and 1.7 steals per game, proving that he is indeed a malleable talent, but due to some injuries, Ball was only able to play 47 games in the second season, and his average data dropped to 9.9 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 1.5 steals per game, so the impatient Lakers sent him to the Pelicans as one of the main trade chips in exchange for AnthonyDavis.
After arriving with the Pelicans, Ball resurrected and improved his average to 14.6 points, 4.8 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 1.5 steals per game, and then in 2021, the Bulls saw Ball's potential and brought him to the Bulls using a sign-and-trade approach. However, with the Bulls, Ball seems to be a contract fraudster, signing a four-year contract and currently playing only 35 games for the Bulls, with two and a half seasons rested due to injuries and surgeries.
2. Josh Hart
Josh Hart, a well-known rebounding guard, can often grab rebounds from centers at 1.96 meters tall in games. He was selected by the Utah Jazz in the 30th pick in the 2017 NBA Draft and then traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, averaging 7.9 points and 4.2 rebounds per game in 23 minutes in his first season and 7.8 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1 steal in 25 minutes in his second season. As a rookie with the 30th pick in the first round, the stats looked almost that meaningless, so the impatient Lakers sent him to the Pelicans as a second chip.
There, Hart's abilities were unleashed, evolving to average 13.4 points, 7.8 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game. Subsequently, the Pelicans traded Hart to the Trail Blazers in order to get All-Star guard CJ McCollum. After two years with the Trail Blazers, Hart arrived at the Knicks and now plays as the main guard under Devils coach Thibodeau, playing more than 40 minutes per game. According to statistics, during March 2024, Josh Hart played more than 40 minutes in nine games in a single month (a total of 14 games), which is the most of any player in the league in March.
3. Brandon Ingram
Like Ball, another chip player, Brandon Ingram, is also a top pick, who was drafted by the Lakers in the 2016 NBA Draft, and averaged 16.1 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game in the second season, and improved to 18.3 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3 assists per game in the third year. Unfortunately, in order to trade for Davis, the Lakers had to give him away as their main bargaining chip.
As a result, Ingram, who is in the fourth year of his rookie contract, came to the Pelicans and averaged 23.8 points, 6.1 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game. Now, Ingram is still not leaving the Pelicans, where he is leading the team to the playoffs with another superstar, Zion Williams. It is worth mentioning that they entered the playoffs this year as eighth in the West, but they struggled to get through the first round due to Zion's injury.
In addition to the above three players who mainly traded Anthony Davis, there are three players who were traded by the Lakers to the Wizards, and then compensated the Pelicans with cash through the Wizards. They are Moritz Wagner, Isaac Bonga, Jeremio Jones
4. Moritz Wagner
As a potential center, Moritz Wagner was selected by the Los Angeles Lakers in the 25th pick in the 2018 NBA draft, but the Lakers selected him but did not give him playing time, so Wagner only averaged 10 minutes per game in his first season, with 4.8 points and 2 rebounds. The following year, he was traded to the Wizards as a bargaining chip to give the Pelicans cash compensation. There, Wagner got some playing time and became averaging 8.7 points and 4.9 rebounds per game.
Subsequently, Wagner moved to the Magic in 20 years, where he established himself, averaging 11 points and 5 rebounds per game. Coincidentally, Wagner's younger brother Franz Wagner was also drafted by the Magic in '21. The brothers are on the same team, and the blood bond between the two is directly awakened, not only leading the German team to win the World Cup last year, but also entering the playoffs together this year. Looking at his thin center lineup and Wagner's performance, the current Lakers team may regret it.
5. Isaac Bonga
Like Wagner, Isaac Bonga was also a rookie in 2018, drafted by the Lakers with the 39th pick before being traded to the Wizards with little playing time. However, Isaac Bonga is really not suitable for playing in the NBA, and he averaged only 5 points and 3.4 rebounds per game on average with the Wizards, and declined year by year, and finally left the NBA completely after 21-22.
6. Jeremio Jones
Jeremio Jones, who didn't enter the league through the NBA draft, was the 18th pick in the 2018 Development League Draft, when he was drafted by a team affiliated with the Warriors and then traded to a affiliated team with the Lakers in October. The Lakers saw his potential and signed him to a two-year NBA contract. Although Jeremiao Jones entered the NBA, he seemed to be unfit to play in the NBA, just like Isaac Bonga, and eventually disappeared when his contract expired.