Only a couple days on the job, Luke Walton took part in LA's draft night on Thursday and sounded ecstatic about LA's choice with the no. 2 pick in the 2016 Draft, Brandon Ingram.
"I don't know if he's the best (player in the draft) or not, but he's the player I wanted, for sure," Walton said. "What he has the potential of doing and what he can already do at his age, with his length and skill set, is very impressive and unique."
Walton added, "You can tell pretty quickly, when a kid is that special, what he can do on a basketball court."
Walton sounded enthusiastic about the choice and excited about working with the 18-year-old over the summer and into the 2016-17 season. Asked about what stood out with the newest Laker, Walton spoke about Ingram's natural ability to make reads on the court, especially defensively. The Lakers coach invoked the name of Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green when talking about Ingram's ability to read the game and help defensively.
"It means that the player is inteligent," Walton said.
While Walton may not have been overtly smiling and cracking jokes, Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak was in rare form on Thursday night. Kupchak sounded thrilled with the team's selection, despite taking a subtle jab at Ingram coming from Duke University in the process. Kupchak went to rival University of North Carolina.
Kupchak said about Ingram, "We look at him and his age and his body type, his willingness to work and be coached, so we think the upside and the potential in him, right now, there is no ceiling on him."
