Premier Lacrosse League College Draft Preview

The Premier Lacrosse League (PLL) College Draft is Tuesday, May 6 at 7 p.m. eastern. 

There have been several mock drafts thrown around in the last few weeks from various beat writers and insiders. There seems to be a consensus on who the first round players will be - it's just a matter of order. However, there could be some surprises on the horizon just like we saw with the NFL draft. Several notable names in the NFL Draft projected to go in the first round found themselves waiting until day two or - in Shedeur Sanders' case - day three. So it makes me think; what kind of surprises could we see with the PLL Draft?

Possible Redwoods Trade?

I reached out to California Redwoods beat writer (and guest of the podcast) Phil Shore and asked him about a possible Redwoods draft day trade. "I can see them packaging picks or trading down for this year or next," Shore answered. To this point, I would say the better option for the Redwoods would be to package the fourth rounders and try to move up this year. With three picks in the top-10, another high-end pick couldn't hurt. The Whipsnakes have three third rounders this year, including the last pick of the round. If the Redwoods packaged No. 29 and 31, could they move up to that pick at 24? Keep in mind, Redwoods already traded No. 26 to Denver for Brendan Nichtern.

Who Slides? 

Shore gave me two names to watch for in a potential "slide" situation. Levi Verch was one name he offered. Verch is one of the top poles in the draft class and one of the top overall prospects on Paul Carcaterra's "Big Board". The other was Notre Dame midfielder Jake Taylor. Taylor likely projects as a second rounder, but Shore noted that he doesn't see either player lasting past the second round.

When I asked Denver Outlaws beat writer (and guest of the podcast) Topher Adams, he said Verch and Virginia pole Ben Wayer. "To put it plainly, I don’t know how many poles we’ll see go early in the draft," Adams said.

Who moves up?

Big movers - according to Shore - include Matt Traynor and Owen Hiltz. Traynor, the Penn State product, has played 12 of 14 games this spring tallying 49 points. He's the No. 3 midfield prospect on Adam Lamberti's board. As for Hiltz, Shore says he projects as a third rounder but expects him to go earlier than that. Some mock drafts have even had him going in the first round. 

In his article for the PLL, Carolina Chaos beat writer (and guest of the podcast) Hayden Lewis had two separate scenarios where Chaos end up with either Jake Taylor or Owen Hiltz, two players I would expect go in the second round. Lewis likes the distributing ability of Hiltz and notes that Carolina doesn't have an elite level distributor in its offense. If the Chaos were to go for Hiltz, a trade down from No. 5 could be an option if they don't think he'll be there at 13 but don't feel comfortable using a top-5 pick on him. If a team behind them has a player on their board in that range, the Chaos might have a trade partner to make it happen.

Adams, along with the others, said Hiltz. Adams went a step further than the rest by stating that Hiltz may have surpassed Coulter Mackasey as the top lefty. 

Bold Predictions

Shore gave a pretty bold draft day prediction. He said no long poles will be selected in the first round. Several mock drafts have had the Atlas taking the aforementioned Verch at No. 6 and the Maryland Whipsnakes possibly taking a pole with the following pick. 

Adams followed suit with Shore regarding long poles in the first round. He also doesn't expect anything crazy to happen on Tuesday night. "I expect a fairly normal draft, all things considered," Adams said. "However, with two new general managers, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a few off the board selections in the latter rounds of the draft."

Later in his article, Lewis offered some first round scenarios. A few of them caught my eye. Lewis' dream scenario was one where the Chaos select Chris Kavanagh at No. 5 overall, while Sam English potentially falls to Carolina at No. 13. Lewis says the odds of that happening aren't all that strong, but calls it an "ideal" scenario.

Make Your Pick

I asked all three writers to make their top selection for their respective teams.

Shore (Rd 1, pick 2): Andrew McAdorey (A/M, Duke)

Shore (Rd 1, pick 3): Chris Kavanagh (A, Notre Dame)

Lewis (Rd 1, pick 5): This pick could get interesting. Lewis' two "on the table" scenarios had the Chaos selecting either Sam English or Sam King. In both scenarios, the preceding picks are Kirst, McAdorey, Kavanagh, and Mackasey. 

Adams (Rd 2, pick 11 overall): Keep in mind, Outlaws traded their first for Pat Kavanagh early in the off-season. Adams told me that if Kavanagh were in this class, he would be a solid No. 2 prospect. With the 11th overall pick though, he likes either Penn defender Brendan Lavelle or Johns Hopkins defender Scott Smith. He calls this selection a Mike Manley/Jesse Bernhardt insurance pick. If they go another way, he'd like Denver to take their favorite goalie of the class.  

We will see how it all plays out in the four round college draft on Tuesday night. Check back here later in the week for a breakdown of the draft and anywhere you get your podcasts for a new episode!

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