EL SEGUNDO, Calif. -- The Los Angeles Lakers drafted 7-foot-1, 265-pound Croatian center Ivica Zubac with the No. 32 pick in Thursday night’s NBA draft.

The 19-year-old Zubac, once considered a potential first-round draft pick, is considered one of the most skilled international centers and has drawn comparisons to Memphis Grizzlies big man Marc Gasol.

"Yeah, I like that comparison because I’m trying to look up to his game and trying to translate his game to mine with my moves," Zubac said in a conference call with Los Angeles media after being drafted.

He added later, "My strength is back to the basket, low-post game and protecting the paint and spacing ability."

Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak described Zubac as a young player who was still developing.

"He’s young and he’s big and he’s got skills," Kupchak said. "He did remind me of NBA players that in this league have made it, but he is a young player. So if he continues to work hard and develop, then I think he has a chance to stick in this league and be a good player."

It remains unclear whether the Lakers will keep Zubac overseas as a draft-and-stash player next season or bring him over immediately.

Zubac said he hasn't talked to the Lakers about their immediate plans, but he added, "I hope I’m going to play next year for the Lakers."

Kupchak was noncommittal.

"I believe he would like to play next year and we’re not opposed to that," he said.

Kupchak did say he'd like for Zubac to play on the Lakers' Summer League team in Las Vegas in mid-July.

Kupchak added that Zubac started playing late and may not be fluid just yet but is still growing into his body and becoming more comfortable on the court.

"We’ve been through drafting young players of size in the past," Kuphak said. "I’m not comparing him to [former Lakers center] Andrew Bynum, but Andrew was 17 years old [when the Lakers drafted him] -- big, long, gangly, almost clumsy at first. That’s what you deal with when you deal with [those guys]. And I was a big player. I kind of developed late. That’s kind of what you’re dealing with when you have somebody of that size and still growing and still developing into that body."

Zubac is a huge Lakers fan who said he watched Kobe Bryant's 60-point finale live at 4 a.m. in Croatia even though he had practice later that morning at 10 a.m.

"This is my dream coming true," he said of being drafted by the Lakers. "I cannot believe this is happening. The Lakers are my No. 1 team since I started playing basketball and Kobe was my favorite player. I’m so happy right now."

Zubac pointed out that he has a Kobe Bryant No. 24 jersey, a Pau Gasol Lakers jersey and even an Andrew Bynum Lakers jersey, though he added the Bynum jersey was "somewhere in my room under all my clothes."

Of Bryant, Zubac said, "I really love his killer instinct and his will to win the game. That’s really the most important thing in basketball."

Zubac, an early-entry candidate for the draft, played on the Croatian U19 team at the 2015 U19 World Championships, finishing third in the tournament in scoring (17.9 points per game) and seventh in rebounding (7.9). His team captured the silver medal.

Zubac, who said he has overcome injuries to his left foot (stress fracture) and right knee (sprain), was playing for a Croatian team KK Cibona until a midseason coaching change led to his minutes decreasing, prompting him to join Mega Leks, a Serbian team.

In five games with Cibona, he averaged 6.8 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.2 blocks in 13 minutes per game.