Stephen A. Smith Reacts To Los Angeles Lakers Drafting Jalen Hood-Schifino

ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith sees promise in Jalen Hood-Schifino joining LeBron James in Los Angeles, but said he'll need to shoot 3-pointers at a high level in order to help the Lakers.

Whenever LeBron James adds a new teammate, it's always a main topic of conversation around the NBA.

The Los Angeles Lakers took one-and-done guard Jalen Hood-Schifino from Indiana with the No. 17 pick in Thursday's 2023 NBA Draft, spurring conversation on the Lakers' future.

Always carrying NBA title aspirations, the Lakers made the Western Conference Finals in 2022-23, but were swept by the eventual-champion Denver Nuggets. Los Angeles shot 33.5 percent from 3-point range in the playoffs, which ranked 11th out of 16 teams. In the regular season. The Lakers were 25th in the NBA in 3-point percentage in the regular season, creating a serious need in this year's draft.

Hood-Schifino shot 33.3 percent from 3-point range in 2022-23, but his freshman season at Indiana came with clear signs of a promising shooter. Across his first 18 games, Hood-Schifino shot 26-for-65, or 40 percent, from beyond the arc, including three games with five or more 3-pointers made. 

Hood-Schifino's outside shooting numbers dropped in the second half of the season, causing some concern, and ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith thinks this trait will be most important during his rookie season with the Lakers.

"The only freshman at Indiana since Eric Gordon in 2007-08 that had multiple 30-point games, give him credit where credit is due," Smith said. "He's supposed to be that threat, they need a shooter. 

But the Los Angeles Lakers right now, you've got to look at what they have. You've got to look at a LeBron James, you've got to look at an Anthony Davis and you've got to look at a team that wasn't the greatest 3-point shooting team in the world. And as a result, you couldn't spread the floor as much as you would like. It crowded the paint, made life a little bit more difficult for LeBron James and Anthony Davis, which they don't need to have.

You want to have perimeter shooters out there to spread the floor so defenders have to go out there and pay attention to them, so it can free up Anthony Davis to do what we know he's capable of doing when he shows up. And that's the same thing with LeBron James as well, because you know they're going to miss their share of games. 

This is what you're looking for when you're looking for the Los Angeles Lakers – if Hood-Schifino can shoot the ball on the pro level the way that he did on the collegiate level. I'm going to be very, very happy, because we all know where I'd rather be come June. I'd rather be in Los Angeles, California, southern California. We all know that, right. I'm rooting for the kid, and he's got a lot of promise. But he'll need to do that [shoot threes] in order to help the Los Angeles Lakers."

Related stories on Indiana basketball

• TJD'S DRAFT SLOT IRRELEVANT NOW: Trayce Jackson-Davis had to wait a long time to hear his name called in the 2023 NBA Draft Thursday night, but this morning that doesn't matter at all. He's got a good fit in Golden State, and it's up to him to prove he can help them win games — and titles — right away. CLICK HERE
• JACKSON-DAVIS FALLS TO WARRIORS: After a first-team All-American senior season at Indiana, Trayce Jackson-Davis will play alongside Steph Curry next season. The Washington Wizards selected Jackson-Davis with the No. 57 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, then traded his draft rights to the Warriors. CLICK HERE
• LAKERS PICK HOOD-SCHIFINO: 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. CLICK HERE