Lakers bringing back Marcus Smart, Aaron Gordon for NBA draft workout

The Lakers will hold their third pre-draft workout Friday at their practice facility in El Segundo.

The team will get second looks at Arizona forward Aaron Gordon, Oklahoma State’s Marcus Smart and Louisiana-Lafayette’s Elfrid Payton. Also scheduled are Michigan’s Nik Stauskas and P.J. Hairston, who played for the D-League’s Texas Legends.

The Lakers worked out Kentucky forward Julius Randle on Tuesday.

Two weeks ago the team held a group audition with Creighton’s Doug McDermott, Syracuse’s Tyler Ennis, UCLA’s Zach LaVine, Kentucky’s James Young, Indiana’s Noah Vonleh, Smart, Gordon and Payton, among others.

The Lakers have the seventh overall pick in the June 26 NBA draft.

Smart is a defensive-minded, 6-foot-3 sophomore point guard who averaged 18.0 points, 4.8 assists and 2.9 steals a game for the Cowboys.

Point guard Payton has rapidly climbed in mock drafts with an interesting combination of size and speed. He averaged 19.3 points, 5.8 assists and 2.3 steals a game with the Ragin’ Cajuns.

Gordon is one of the most athletic players in the draft, and while he’s still developing as a scorer, he can guard almost any position on the floor. While he shot just 42.2% from the free throw line, he also hit a respectable 35.6% from three-point range while averaging 12.4 points and 8.0 rebounds a night for the Wildcats.

Stauskas is a shooter, hitting 50% from the field and 44.2% from three-point range while averaging 17.5 points a game for the Wolverines.

Hairston attended the University of North Carolina but was suspended indefinitely after a traffic incident, cited for reckless driving and speeding.

He left the Tar Heels to play in the NBA Development League, averaging 21.8 points a game while shooting 45.3% from the field and 35.8% from three-point range.

Players like Gordon, Smart, Randle and Vonleh project to be selected in the top seven, but the Lakers are still doing their due diligence.

In what could shake up the draft all the way up to the Lakers’ pick, Kansas center Joel Embiid will undergo surgery with a stress fracture in his right foot, requiring surgery.

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