Champion Lakers grab Ebanks, Caracter in 2nd round

Although Los Angeles Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak thought he would have to get lucky Thursday to draft a player who could make his roster this fall, he was feeling fortunate after grabbing two forwards widely expected to go a bit higher.

The two-time champions chose West Virginia's Devin Ebanks and UTEP's Derrick Caracter in the second round of the NBA draft Thursday. Both will play for the Lakers' entry in the upcoming summer league.

``Then they'll have to make the team in training camp,'' Kupchak said.

With the 43rd overall pick, the Lakers grabbed the 6-foot-9 Ebanks, who averaged 12 points and a team-high 8.1 rebounds while playing strong defense for the Mountaineers last season, his sophomore campaign.

``He's got a lively bounce to his step,'' Kupchak said. ``Very active, versatile perimeter player. He'll be exciting from time to time, but he's a young player. At that age, you're drafting a young player that you hope gets better.''

Several draft observers likened Ebanks to former Lakers forward Trevor Ariza, and Kupchak didn't shy from the comparison, saying Ebanks is a potential shutdown wing defender with a better outside shot than Ariza at the same point in their development.

``I'm so happy right now, you don't understand,'' Ebanks shouted in a phone interview during a jubilant party back home. ``I'm willing to learn. They just won the NBA championship, so I have a whole bunch of stuff to learn, and what better place to learn than with the NBA champions?''

He's also yet another Queens native on a roster already featuring Ron Artest, who knows Ebanks from the neighborhood, and Lamar Odom, who grew up with Ebanks' uncle.

``It's probably not a bad thing,'' Kupchak said. ``It was something that came up during the interview. More so than Lamar and Ron, a young player being on a veteran team, with the character we have on this team, for beginners, I think that's a strong group for a young player that's developing to be around.''

With time and proper coaching, Kupchak suggested Ebanks could develop into a backup for Artest and an eventual replacement for Luke Walton. Kupchak acknowledged he's worried about Walton's health after a back injury limited him for much of last season.

``(Walton) is going to devote the summer to rehabilitation, but if he can't make a contribution next year, we felt like we had to get someone to back him up,'' Kupchak said. ``That's not a guarantee, but that is a player in an area that we had a need at.''

The Lakers acquired the 43rd pick when they traded their first-round pick to Memphis two years ago in the deal that brought Pau Gasol to town.

Los Angeles then used its own 58th pick on Caracter, a high-school star widely considered the nation's top player as a senior before flaming out in two seasons at Louisville while clashing with coach Rick Pitino.

Caracter rescued his basketball career in a strong single season with the Miners, averaging 14.1 points and 8.1 rebounds before leaving school one year early to become the first UTEP player drafted since 1995. Although his combination of agility and bulk was his most impressive asset with the Miners, Kupchak thinks Caracter still has work to do on his conditioning.

``He's a player that we didn't think would be available,'' Kupchak said. ``We had him going a little earlier in the draft.''