Report: Lakers linked to several draft prospects, including center who led Big Ten in blocks one season

HoopsHype has compiled a list using its own sources as well as media reports that details which prospects NBA teams have seen in workouts ahead of the 2025 NBA Draft.

By that measure, the Los Angeles Lakers are linked to several draft prospects, including one center who led the Big Ten in blocks at one point in his collegiate career.

According to HoopsHype, prospects Lamont Butler, Isaac Nogues, C.J. Huntley, Izan Almansa and Clifford Omoruyi have all been involved in workouts with the Lakers thus far.

There’s no guarantee that the list includes everyone the Lakers have seen work out. For example, the Lakers were reportedly set to be involved in a workout featuring two-time national champ Samson Johnson last month. Still, the HoopsHype list offers some valuable info at this stage of the draft process.

Omoruyi is the center in question who once led the Big Ten in blocks, as he averaged 1.7 blocks per game over the course of his collegiate career and swatted away a whopping 2.9 shots per contest while playing for Rutgers University in the 2023-24 collegiate season. That gave him 93 blocks in total that season.

He’s also a solid rebounder, as he averaged 12.2 rebounds per 40 minutes during his collegiate career. He pulled down 6.5 on average in just 19.2 minutes of action per game in his one and only campaign at the University of Alabama, which came this past season as he got a taste of the SEC.

The Lakers probably could have used Omoruyi’s presence on the glass during their short stint in the 2025 NBA Playoffs, as they got outrebounded 219-195 in their first-round series against the Minnesota Timberwolves and were dominated overall down low.

Omoruyi may very well be equipped to address a top need for Los Angeles, but he’s far from the only notable talent on the Lakers’ draft radar. Of the aforementioned players, a number of them earned all-conference honors during their collegiate careers, and a few of them have size that could really help L.A. Some of the listed players also took different routes instead of playing in college.

Maybe one or more of the players in question will end up landing with the Lakers sooner rather than later. The 2025 NBA Draft is set to kick off later on this month on June 25.