He's been a monster since the new year. I am impressed and very very surprised. Hopefully it's not a contract year type performance but this is who he is. Winning does heal up a mess. I was very wrong about him
Apparently we can keep IT and JR and still have Pg13....pg13 would have to do a Cp3/hou type scenario where he opts in the final year to get traded to the Lakers and we still sign JR and whoever it is we want or re-sign IT
Let's be real, it is a "contract year" season performance but given how he dedicated himself to play the best ball of his young career and that he sought out Walton to iron out their differences speaks volumes that Randle will likely not have that "fat cat" syndrome after a signing a hefty payday. I'd reckon he'd work even harder to justify he's worth it. That and I think Randle genuinely likes the staff, his teammates and the organization.
He's been putting 20.7 pts 9.8 reb 4.3 ast on 63.2 TS% since the allstar break. Julius Randle is a max player. Back up the brinks truck for Randle.
Hopefully, Randle will be a Laker for years to come. If that doesn't work out, he has a fan for life. He's been nothing but professional since being drafted and I could not be happier seeing him grow and find early success. Man's game.
Unfortunately I wasn't able to catch the game tonight, I'll be looking for a replay somewhere, but what I actually love was his post-game interview. He's not going to let any of that talk around his team? After a great performance in a win, that's what winners say. I love it. The man has finally come into his own. I believe he can be even better than this, but the way he's playing right now is legitimately an All-Star level. At this point there's no way I let him go. Do whatever I have to do. Shuffle whatever I have to shuffle, but he's staying. We'll figure out another way to add our stars if we have to, but he's staying with Ball and Ingram and of course I'd love to keep Kuzma too. Randle has done everything he had to so that he gets paid and he stays a Laker. I fully believe the FO is in on that mindset. I hope that Julius is as well because I want him here when he's winning big games in the playoffs.
Manhandle Randle is putting them down. Bodies flying, scared looks, they don't want to guard him...lol Max the Man..
Glad some of you are coming to your senses Jules fan since day one, keep it up, get paid, ball for years
The key to keeping Randle is getting rid of Deng....which at this point we MUST accomplish by giving away the Cavs first and another first... Deng and 2 firsts are tradable on a 2 year deal. There is probably no way those 2 late firsts will result in a better player than Randle.
One more thing. I would like to say a big THANK YOU to the classy C Bags organization for taking Marcus freakin Smart
It’s crazy how easily he scores inside the paint. I almost expect him to score whenever he gets the ball and goes to work in the post. I haven’t had that feeling about one of our bigs since Shaq left (Gasol was a bit soft, Bynum was awkward). Which begs the thought...prime Shaq would absolutely terrorize this league.
i think if he finishes the year playing this well, you have a chance to pitch george on coming here without a second star, suggesting randle's already it, and you'll have cash to fill out the roster with other solid players. his leadership has been pretty impressive, imo. loved the physicality and defensive pressure to close the game. the refs were letting people hack our guards (and randle), so he just said..."i can do that". putting jokic in his place was good, too. for a big strong guy, he flops around an awful lot.
Dude, wtf is your issue with IT?! We'd be lucky to have him back next year on a reasonable deal...He's had a real positive impact on our young guys. The offense has been great with him on the court.
I've come to hate Jokic because of how much he's constantly flopping. I loved that he got in foul trouble early. He's one of those classic jerks that'll push and shove, but as soon as you even hold your ground he's going to flop around. Even that last push wasn't hard enough for Jokic to hit the ground like that. He's a big freaking guy. How in the world do you let that go? As for convincing George to sign without another star, if they can keep this up I tend to agree. I still think the Lakers jump through hoops to get LeBron as well, but the pressure is lessening with every great game Julius plays. I think there's dozens of other reasons the Lakers want two max deals to go with this group, but all that means is finding a home for Deng. Our Cleveland pick is becoming more of a mid than a mid-late 1st rounder. We should be able to attach that as well as a loosely protected 2020 pick to Deng. There's a chance we'll have to include one of the other kids, but there's no way we should leave this summer without Julius on the roster with the way he's playing.
