Hello, Lakers Nation. Welcome and it's Friday. We're going to have some fun Friday here and we've got,

I love that we get to start the show off with this. I don't get to use this button off of enough.

This is awesome. Here we go. Breaking news. That's right.

Breaking news.

According to Adrian Wojtznarowski,

the New Orleans Pelicans have decided to let the Lakers keep their pick this year.

So that means the Lakers will have the 17th pick in the draft.

The Pelicans will defer to the 2025 pick.

Now, I will say this.

This is what we expected to happen.

This is not a surprise in any kind of way.

But, and frankly, I think the alternative would have been better for the Lakers.

Let me be honest.

Look, there's a reason why the Pelicans decided to not take the 2024 pick this year

and would rather defer to 2025.

I think the 2025 pick has more value.

I think there's more upside with the 2025 pick.

And it's a worthwhile gamble if you're the Pelicans in the Western

Conference that is an absolute, brutal, ridiculous conference.

Sure, maybe the Lakers are significantly better next year, and they wind up dropping the,

let's say the Pelicans, the floor might be what, they get the 25th pick next year or something

like that.

...