The Los Angeles Lakers selected Jalen Hood-Schifino with the no. 17 pick and Maxwell Lewis with the no. 40 pick in the 2023 NBA Draft.

The Lakers considered trading their first-round pick until the last minute. They did make a move earlier on Thursday, sending no. 47 plus $4.35 million to the Indiana Pacers to move up seven spots.

Now that draft night is over and the Lakers have Hood-Schifino and Lewis on their roster (for now), let's hand out some grades.

Jalen Hood-Schifino

Hood-Schifino, 20, is a 6'6 combo guard who won Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors while averaging 13.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 3.7 assists on .417/.333/.776 shooting splits for the Indiana Hoosiers.

“Fino” is a promising playmaker and shot-creator on the wing with above-average size and athleticism — checking various boxes for the Lakers (he even thinks so). The pressing questions will be whether he can adequately space the floor and defend at an NBA level next season, although those same concerns were levied at the Lakers' 2022 pick, Max Christie — another 6'6ish wing coming off one year of Big Ten ball — who acquitted himself well when thrust into the rotation.

Here's ClutchPoints' Brett Siegel on Hood-Schifino, in his final Big Board:

“While his three-point shooting numbers may not show it, Jalen Hood-Schifino is one of the best perimeter players in this year’s NBA Draft and has a lot of potential for growth. Confident with the ball in his hands on offense, Hood-Schifino has seen his stock increase in recent weeks. There is even talk of him going in the lottery. He can hold his own against bigger, stronger opponents and is an underrated passer as well, especially in transition.”

“To be able to get a lottery-level talent in Jalen Hood-Schifino with the 17th pick is something we’re incredibly excited about,” said Rob Pelinka, who added that Jalen has “Lakers DNA.”

Grade: A-

Maxwell Lewis

In the second round, the Lakers took Maxwell Lewis from Pepperdine at no. 40.

Lewis is another 20-year-old long wing (6'7). He averaged 17.1 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 2.8 assists in 31 games last season and shot 34.8% from 3. According to ESPN's Dave McMenamin, he impressed the Lakers' in his pre-draft workouts.

Siegel had Lewis at no. 28 on his board. Here's his assessment:

“Maxwell Lewis has looked stronger than he did at Pepperdine throughout the pre-draft process with a 7’0” wingspan that has intrigued a lot of teams. Lewis has proven to be effective from the perimeter as both a pull-up and catch-and-shoot threat, and he is a strong ball handler as well. While classified as a wing, Lewis can really play anywhere and is a prospect I believe can come in and start in the NBA during his rookie year. Maybe he will fall to the second round, but Lewis can immediately play in the league.”

The Lakers' vaunted scouting department, run by Jesse and Joey Buss, has an impressive track record of finding players late or after the draft and turning them into quality rotation pieces, at worst. Over the next few years, the new CBA will increasingly incentivize teams to fill out their rosters with players on rookie-scale contracts. With that in mind, the Lakers' decision to actually take two enticing prospects is utterly reasonable.

Free agency starts next week, and trades are always possible. For this draft night, the Lakers kept things straightforward.

Grade: B+