Los Angeles Lakers Select Indiana's Jalen Hood-Schifino in First Round of 2023 NBA Draft

After winning Big Ten Freshman of the Year at Indiana, Jalen Hood-Schifino was taken with the No. 17 pick in the first round of the 2023 NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Lakers.

Jalen Hood-Schifino will team up with NBA legend LeBron James next year.

The Los Angeles Lakers selected Hood-Schifino with the No. 17 pick in the first round of the 2023 NBA Draft on Thursday night at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.

"It's just like a surreal feeling," Hood-Schifino said. "But I've got to give all thanks to the man above."

Shoutout to Laker Nation 💛 pic.twitter.com/9duEru0zId

— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) June 23, 2023

Welcome to The League. pic.twitter.com/osDj3pIA7E

— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) June 23, 2023

Hood-Schifino is the first former Indiana Hoosier to be taken in the NBA Draft since 2019, when the Boston Celtics picked Romeo Langford 14th overall. With this pick, Indiana now has seven players in the NBA, including Hood-Schifino (Los Angeles Lakers), OG Anunoby (Toronto Raptors), Thomas Bryant (Denver Nuggets), Eric Gordon (Los Angeles Clippers), Langford (San Antonio Spurs), Victor Oladipo (Miami Heat) and Cody Zeller (Miami Heat).

Proud of you son! @jalenhs Congratulations. pic.twitter.com/W6FFBCpCcl

— Mike Woodson (@MikeWoodsonNBA) June 23, 2023

Hood-Schifino arrived at Indiana as a five-star recruit, but some thought he'd need to develop over multiple years in college before turning pro. But he made the most of his lone season in Bloomington, especially after a season-ending injury to Xavier Johnson put the ball in Hood-Schifino's hands on a regular basis.

As a freshman under coach Mike Woodson, Hood-Schifino averaged 13.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 0.8 steals per game. He shot 41.7 percent overall, 33.3 percent from 3-point range and 77.6 percent from the free throw line. 

Notable performances from Hood-Schifino include a 33-point effort against Northwestern on Jan. 8, when he made 12-of-17 shots and five 3-pointers. He went 6-of-9 from beyond the arc a few weeks later against Ohio State and finished with 24 points. Hood-Schifino was often his best in clutch moments, rising to the occasion with late buckets in home victories over Illinois and Purdue. 

But his undisputed top performance as a Hoosier came on Feb. 25 against No. 5 Purdue inside a raucous Mackey Arena. Hood-Schifino calmly and confidently picked apart the Purdue defense with his patented mid-range jumper, finishing the game with a career-high 35 points as Indiana claimed a 79-71 victory.

Indiana Hoosiers guard Jalen Hood-Schifino (1) dribbles the ball against Purdue Boilermakers guard Braden Smith (3) during the first half at Mackey Arena / © Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports

And now, he'll join a Lakers team headlined by LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Los Angeles' main guards last year were D'Angelo Russell, Dennis Schroder and Austin Reaves.