The 2026 NBA Draft is on the horizon, bringing one of the most significant dates on the league’s calendar. 

Childhood dreams of making it to the NBA will be achieved. 

Teams will turn draft assets into tangible players who they hope will contribute to winning in the short- and long-term future.

And in the background, teams will continue to explore the options that’ll help them achieve their goals for 2026-27. 

For the Lakers, who have a first-round pick in the draft (No. 25), the opportunity the draft presents as it pertains to roster building can’t be whiffed on.  

In their pursuit of assembling a roster that’ll be competitive against the 2026 Western Conference champion Spurs and 2025 NBA champion Thunder, the Lakers have two main options for their first-round pick: trade it for a player who’s ready to compete for a title now alongside Luka Doncic or select a prospect whom they plan to develop and hope will help now and in the future.  

If the Lakers choose the latter, there isn’t a shortage of options. 

Toward the top of that list should be Santa Clara forward Allen Graves, who would be the steal of the draft if he fell to the Lakers.

Allen Graves, Santa Clara forward

2025-26 stats: 11.8 points (51.2% shooting — 56% on 2s, 41.3% on 3s), 6.5 rebounds, 1.9 steals, 1.8 assists, 0.9 blocks, 22.6 minutes

Measurements: 6-foot-7 ¾ (without shoes), 225 pounds, 7-foot wingspan, 8-foot-10 ½ standing reach  

Why draft Allen Graves?

Lakers coach JJ Redick said next season’s team has to be better with “being able to dribble, pass and shoot.”

Graves excels in these areas, making him a Swiss Army Knife-esque player who can fit into a variety of roles because of his versatile skill set and basketball IQ.

He has high-level passing/playmaking skills for a player his size after being a point guard before his growth spurts. His height helps him see the floor well before making advanced reads. 

Graves can run an offense in doses because of his playmaking ability and will keep the ball moving, helping maintain or create advantages without turning the ball over. 

He’s at his best when playing out of the short roll, elbows, blocks or popping out of pick and rolls. 

His basketball IQ is evident with his playmaking on both sides of the floor — he was the lone player in men’s college basketball to have a steal percentage and block percentage of at least 4.9 in 2025-26. Graves’ quick hands, awareness, length and mobility helped make him one of college basketball’s best defensive playmakers last season. 

And he was a credible 3-point shooting threat for the Broncos. 

Graves is the type of player who’d fit on nearly every NBA roster because of his versatile skill set.

Regardless of other Lakers’ roster decisions, Graves would be additive to their roster. 

Areas of improvement?

His lack of athleticism and explosiveness contributed to his struggles with scoring efficiency near the rim, and that’ll likely only be worse in the NBA. 

His lack of lateral quickness and mobility will make it difficult for him to stay in front of quicker guards on the perimeter and defend in space. 

Graves also will need to get stronger to defend bigger forwards without having to foul. He averaged 5.5 fouls per 40 minutes in college.

He also isn’t a versatile scorer — he’s more of a play finisher than creator, and his finishing abilities were limited to 3-point shooting or scoring after an advantage was created.

There are also questions — ones that can’t be answered — on how much his efficient statistical production and great analytics are a result of coming off the bench for a mid-major program instead of playing against more elite collegiate competition.