Darius Morris

Darius Morris was overlooked by many of the nation's top college basketball programs coming out of Windward High School in West Los Angeles.

So when the former Michigan point guard waited longer than expected to hear his name called at Thursday night's NBA Draft, he said it was nothing new.

"When I heard my name finally called, it was a relief. But also at the same time it definitely put a chip on my shoulder, getting picked 41," Morris said in a post-draft interview at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.

"But that’s the story of my life. Never been a favorite, but always been one of the best."

Considered a potential first-round selection, Morris dropped to the 11th pick of the second round, the 41st overall selection, where the Los Angeles Lakers called him home.

The trade off for losing the millions of guaranteed dollars that a first-round choice receives is an ideal destination.

“Never in a million years did I think I’d get drafted by the Lakers,” Morris told the Lakers website. “It was always my goal to play in the NBA, but I never thought I’d be playing for the Lakers in my home town. It’s really great, a dream come true.”

Morris said he's excited to be close to his family, "something I didn’t do for college."

In an interview with WTKA-AM (1050) this morning, Michigan coach John Beilein said he stayed up late - Morris’ name was called just after 11 p.m. - to see where his program’s single-season assist record holder ended up.

“Darius is in a good spot with the Lakers, and I know he’s very pleased,” he told Michigan Insider host Sam Webb.

“I know that he was hoping first round and was very, very close to some first-round decisions. I think sometimes general managers are torn between one or the other … sometimes it may be a coin flip as to who they may take.”

The financial ramifications of the draft drop were significant. First-round draft choices receive a three-year guaranteed contract at a rate assigned by the rookie salary scale.

Second-round choices are guaranteed only the league minimum annual salary ($490,180 in 2011-12) and teams can cut those players in training camp without significant financial penalties.

All of those figures are conjectural as NBA owners and players continue labor agreement discussions. The league’s current collective bargaining agreement ends June 30 and a lockout looms.

Besides being close to his childhood home, he seems to find himself in a good place professionally.

In a post-draft press conference, Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak said he expects guard Shannon Brown to opt out of his contract and become a free agent and the team’s 15-year veteran point guard, Derek Fisher, is nearing the end of his NBA career.

Kupchak said the selections of Morris and College of Charleston’s Andrew Goudelock - another guard drafted five spots after Morris - address the needs of the team.

Morris, considered one of the best passing point guards in the draft, was knocked for poor outside shooting. Goudelock is known more for his ability to create his own shots (and knock them down).

"You know what you get when you draft a player in the 40s or 50s," Kupchak said, according to The Associated Press. "Which is a player you hope makes your team. We don't know that, it's not like drafting in the lottery."

Beilein thinks Morris being the Lakers’ top draft choice - the team didn’t have a first-round selection - is an important distinction.

“I think that no matter what round you’re in - if you were the 30th pick or the 41st pick, but you’re that team’s first pick - I think that makes a major difference,” Beilein said on WTKA.