In the 2015 NBA Draft, the Los Angeles Lakers were leaning towards drafting one of the top two guard prospects instead of picking one of the top two big men prospects. At the number two pick, the Lakers were either going to take Emmanuel Mudiay or D’Angelo Russell and Mudiay worked out twice for the Lakers, making it seem like LA might be headed that way.
At the end of the day, the Lakers took Russell over Mudiay and Jahlil Okafor and it might have been for one specific reason, according to Los Angeles Lakers coach Byron Scott.
Following from Bill Oram of the Orange County Register.
Scott said when Lakers worked out Mudiay he “didn’t think he was a true point guard” & “didn’t think he was a guy who made great decisions.”
— Bill Oram (@billoram) November 2, 2015
Lakers vs Nuggets on Tuesday at Staples. Scott said Mudiay would be very good, but would have to learn PG skills Russell already possessed.
— Bill Oram (@billoram) November 2, 2015
Mudiay versus Russell will be one of the best comparisons for years to come as well as Jahlil Okafor versus Karl-Anthony Towns. The debate will rage on as long as the two players are going at it and on Tuesday night, the Lakers and Nuggets will matchup putting the two rookies against each other.
Mudiay voiced his opinion on the comparison from Scott, courtesy of Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post.
“I don’t care about the comparison,” Mudiay said. “He knows, I know, we’re not the same player. That’s just the media talking, so I don’t pay attention to that.” […] Whether or not either of them likes it, Los Angeles Lakers rookie D’Angelo Russell and Nuggets rookie Mudiay will be compared in some form throughout their careers. They were the two best point guards available in the most recent NBA draft and were constantly dissected as fans and media tried to put a face on which of the two was the better pro prospect.
In an interview before the start of training camp, Mudiay spoke about what he thought regarding the hype surrounding Russell and himself before the draft and the link they figure to share as long as they are playing. […] “This all just comes down to me not being in America because I went to China,” Mudiay said. “So, going to China, out of sight, you’re not going to get seen. D’Angelo had a great college career for his freshman year.”
“There’s going to be some games where I can score a lot, and there’s going to be some games where I’m probably going to be off,” Mudiay said. “But I can’t get my head too low. Just got to stay even-keeled. You’re going to win some; you’re going to lose some. But you give your all and do other things, too.” […] Mudiay is averaging 12.7 points, 5.3 assists and 1.0 steals per game. He’s shooting 33.3 percent from the field and 38.5 percent from the 3-point line. Mudiay is shooting 50 percent from the free-throw line and is averaging 6.3 turnovers per game.
