Please Tell me I'm Wrong about Randle

[tamaraw08]

I don't have the exact numbers but this guy has been bricking a ton of contested shots within 7 feet. Take away that unconstested tip in and all alone dunk last night, he was like 0-8 from the field.
He can dribble... but can't finish.
I'll be the happiest guy alive If I'm proven wrong about this one.

[Booz Vivic]

You asked me to tell this youre wrong friend

[Bosnian Sajo]

His misses came mostly from mid range, 18ft shots. He is in love with that shot, was throwing it up during summer league a lot too, which is not a good thing.

[Levity]

The kid has not been able to finish at the basket for the life of him. But it's comforting to see him get to the rim pretty easily. And if he starts consistently hitting that 15 footer, he path to the rim will be even easier.

but god damn, julius. finish an easy lay up, please.

[SourGrapes]

not a fan of his. for how impatient people have been with d'angelo, julius should be better. he's too short

[Bay Area Baller]

Lakers drafted Randle to be the next Lamar Odom. A glue guy that has length, good foot work, and can finish at the rim. So far its not panning out. Be lucky you picked a descent PF in Bass, but other than that Randle a miss for being NBA ready , and could take years of work to live up to Laker expectations. Lets all give the Lakers an A for effort though.

[sammichoffate]

Still very early, there were two plays where he landed awkwardly and was trying not to twist his ankles. I think he's just playing it safe since it's preseason, hope he gets more consistent though.

[Mr. Jabbar]

You're Wrong about Randle.

http://stream1.gifsoup.com/view3/3387202/kobe-system-you-re-welcome-o.gif

[Fallen Angel]

OP is actually 100% right

[Genaro]

I hope I'm wrong but I don't see nothing special about him so far. I'll wait before calling him a bust thought. I think he can pan out pretty good, but not really good.

[G-train]

I wouldn't make a judgement just yet on a 20 year old coming off a broken leg.

[Naero]

We need to take everything with a grain of salt while we're in pre-season mode. I know that it's easy bigger extremities, such Randle's 2-10 outing last night, to send warning signs even in pre-season mode; but context illustrates that this is still merely a sample size that can easily skew the grand-scheme picture.

Everyone remembers Randle's grisly season-ending leg breakage last season; what's more nuanced and not as prevalently mentioned is an ambient factor

[chips93]

The real paramountcy is that the effort and all-around grit was there; that bodes well for the long run as long Randle continues to channel his unwavering work ethic in the right direction, which Metta World Peace may be able to attest to. The shortcomings we've seen can be refined; but what's less inheritable is the mentality that this kid bears, and thus all signs point to a prosperous future for him as long as he remains healthy.

what makes you so sure that he has a great work ethic?

He got by throughout high school and college on size and athleticism, by just bullying smaller players, never developing his off-hand. He makes lamar odom look ambidextrous.

[outbreak]

Well before the draft scouts talked about his biggest weakness being his inability to finish at the rim which for a guy who can't shoot and was perceived as undersized could be a big flaw.

After he went to the lakers though every ignored that and said he was a great player....

I still think he ends up an average starter/bench big type guy and nothing more. It's just hilarious how lakers fans over hype players and totally ignore weaknesses. Fans should be hoping he improves his flaws not just ignoring them.

[Levity]

what makes you so sure that he has a great work ethic?

He got by throughout high school and college on size and athleticism, by just bullying smaller players, never developing his off-hand. He makes lamar odom look ambidextrous.

he lost somewhere between 15-20 lbs. for a big man coming off a broken leg who didnt resume basketball activities until spring, thats not too shabby.

he definitely could learn to go right, though. But we generally see that kind of development after a roookie season. he didnt necessarily have a rookie season, but youre right, it was apparent in his first go around at summer league that he was very reliant on going left

[Bosnian Sajo]

Well before the draft scouts talked about his biggest weakness being his inability to finish at the rim which for a guy who can't shoot and was perceived as undersized could be a big flaw.

After he went to the lakers though every ignored that and said he was a great player....

I still think he ends up an average starter/bench big type guy and nothing more. It's just hilarious how lakers fans over hype players and totally ignore weaknesses. Fans should be hoping he improves his flaws not just ignoring them.

Lol, he's not going to be a bench player. Maybe this season, but Randle will be an allstar player once he figures it out.

[SwishSquared]

Well before the draft scouts talked about his biggest weakness being his inability to finish at the rim which for a guy who can't shoot and was perceived as undersized could be a big flaw.

After he went to the lakers though every ignored that and said he was a great player....

I still think he ends up an average starter/bench big type guy and nothing more. It's just hilarious how lakers fans over hype players and totally ignore weaknesses. Fans should be hoping he improves his flaws not just ignoring them.I thought the same thing in college. He had trouble finishing over legit length in the paint. He's skilled and he can master floaters and have an impact, but I don't think he's a future superstar.

Seems like a 3rd option-type on a playoff team. I think he'll be average on defense at his peak, but will take some years to get to that point. Offers little positional versatility imo, so that will also knock him down some. Still intrigued by him, but I don't expect much in the next couple seasons. He can totally prove me wrong and I'm rooting for him to do well, but I just feel realistically he won't a top 10-15 guy.

[LoneyROY7]

You're not wrong. He's not good.

[wakencdukest]

He's an undersized power forward who tries to face up and dribble every time he gets the ball. The problem is he can't finish at the rim, he doesn't look for the open man, and he can't shoot from long range. I would be amazed if he ever reached all star level.

[bobopenguin]

i can see this coming.. anthony bennett vs julius randle..

[AirTupac]

This is only guy i have doubts about. I'm pretty confident Russel + Clarkson will be the future allstar duo but Randle will probably be traded away.

[sundizz]

It's interesting to think that out of Draymond Green, Julius Randle and Anthony Bennett that Dray is the one that actually becomes a good to great NBA player.

I think people severely underrate how important TIMING and TOUCH is in basketball. It's not really a measurable skill. It doesn't show up in shoot around, nor at combines, nor when talking to people. It is simply something innate that some people have and some people don't. Not to say that you can't be a productive player without those two, but to be a truly great player you definitely need some level of both of those.

Julius does seem like he has both of those, but he needs to adjust to the speed of the games etc. Give him 20 games of getting used to the NBA and I think that he'll be fine. It's the same for all of us. When we play against new players and a different game speed what we do out there is severely affected (our shooting, passing, etc). Play against them 5-10x and you are significantly more calm because you know exactly how the game is going to be played out. You know where to pick your spots, when to attack, who's going to close out, etc. It's not something you think about...you just know.

[sammichoffate]

You were wrong.
:pimp:

[BigNBAfan]

He's played less than 100minutes of pro ball in his career dude

[Bosnian Sajo]

14 minutes to be exact.

[Cold soul]

I think Randle will be very good several years down the road I see him as mix of Odom and Z-BO.

[senelcoolidge]

An undersized Power Forward with short arms and lacking the ability to finish and shoot. That sounds awful. I don't think he's going to pan out. They will give him and Russell plenty of chances especially since the lakers are a bad team..they can give guys that are developing minutes. He can't push guys around like he did in college..not NBA bigs. He can't defend. He's bad.