Jayson Tatum Shockingly Reveals Lakers Had 'Zero Interest' in Drafting Him

The Lakers drafted Lonzo Ball No. 2 overall in 2017, a spot above Tatum.

Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

When the Los Angeles Lakers held the No. 2 overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, they selected Lonzo Ball out of UCLA. Right after the Lakers picked Ball, The Boston Celtics drafted Jayson Tatum No. 3 overall.

During the draft process, Tatum assumed he was going to get picked by the Phoenix Suns. The Celtics had the No. 1 overall pick in the draft at the time, and Markelle Fultz was seen as the consensus No. 1 overall prospect.

"The Celtics had the No. 1 pick at the time," Tatum recalled on the Club 520 Podcast. "They came to watch me in Phoenix, I work out for all of 'em they watch me Somebody on the Celtics' front office was like 'yo, one of the best workouts I've seen, but we've got the No. 1 pick, we're probably not going to pick you.'"

Though Tatum was becoming excited by the idea of playing for Phoenix, he did dream of playing for the Lakers growing up, but the Lakers did not see him work out before the draft.

"I grew up a Kobe fan," Tatum said. "I always wanted to play for the Lakers. For them to have the No. 2 pick and it wasn't even a thought that I was going to get drafted. That was kind of devastating. I never worked out for the Lakers, they never came to watch me work out."

Ultimately, the Celtics traded their pick and ended up with the No. 3 overall pick in the draft. The Philadelphia 76ers ended up with the No. 1 overall pick, and selected Fultz out of Washington. The Lakers drafted Ball, the Celtics would go on to draft Tatum after hosting him for a second workout, and the Suns ended up drafting Joshua Jackson No. 4 overall.

Tatum has had an excellent career thus far. He is a five-time All-Star, four-time All-NBA member, 2022 Eastern Conference MVP, and champion. In his career, Tatum has averaged 23.2 points per game and is a career 46 percent shooter from the field.

Tatum did not get to play for the Lakers, but he has gone on to have a successful career with the Celtics, including winning a championship with Boston earlier this year.

Tatum acknowledges now: "It definitely worked out."

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