As a child who grew up wearing the jerseys of Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and Metta World Peace, Ivica Zubac dreamed of someday translating his upbringing in Croatia to a career in the NBA.
As evidenced by his purple and gold wardrobe, Zubac was a huge Lakers fan, but the thought of not only making the NBA, but also getting to join his lifelong favorite team, was too much of a fantasy to add to that vision of the future.
But on Monday, donning a grey “Los Angeles Basketball” shirt, the 19-year-old stepped off the Lakers’ practice court in El Segundo as part of the young nucleus of the Lakers.