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  1. We all know the good things Julius Randle can do. Big man with handles on the fast break. Got a triple double against the Grizzles. Strong as a bull and just as stubborn. Good passer when he wants to be. Ton of potential. Things like watching him torch players like Draymond Green (He can't guard me!) make me excited to watch him. But he also has some serious bad habits and attitude issues that frustrate Lakers fans and coaches.
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  3. On Offense:
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  5. 1) Lazy screening kills valuable shot clock time and demoralize teammates. If he sets a good screen, he thinks the ball is coming to him and the defense immediately knows it too. Makes it easier to defend.
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  7. 2) Selfish stat pusher. If a pass will immediately result in an assist, he'll pass. But if it's not, he'll force it to the hole for a bad shot hoping to get the rebound on his own miss rather than make the good play. A lot of Randle's offensive rebounds come this way. If he makes the correct play, Randle's stats look a lot worse as hockey assists don't show up except in advanced stats.
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  9. 3) Movement without the ball. Unless the play is designed for him, he takes the play off doing the minimum and that is it. It makes it easier for defenses to figure out plays when they see Julius loafing, they know they can cheat off him to make a play. You can see D'Angelo getting frustrated when Randle does this.
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  11. 4) Using his left hand when he should be using his right hand. Randle actually can finish with his right hand. Look at the videos when he does use his right hand. It's good enough that he should be using it more often. It's discipline that is the issue. He likes finishing with his left and making more difficult shots than finishing an easier shot with his right.
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  13. Then there is defense:
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  15. 1) Get back on defense, Julius! - How many free buckets does opposing teams get when Randle jogs slowly back and his man gets a freebie due to hustle? Watch a Lakers games and count them. It's every game with Randle.
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  17. 2) Lazy defense - Julius gets lazy if the ball isn't near him and his man often slips him for a free bucket. His man defense is excellent IF Julius is engaged. If he's not, his man is going to have a good night.
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  19. 3) Rebounding - Julius is very selfish in rebounding and has actually caused turnovers taking it from his own teammates. This is a stat padding issue. When he should box out and let a teammate get the easy rebound because of positioning, he goes for the ball and an opposing player gets the ball instead.
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  21. 4) Screens. - Julius always takes the easy path on a screen. It's very predictable and causes open shots.
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  23. !======================================================================!
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  25. Overall, he's still a great player who needs some strong coaching and if he overcomes his selfish tendencies, he could be an all-star. But he comes with a cost.
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  27. Loul Deng's best position is power forward. He showed last year that he can play this position at a NBA starting level and he's been relegating to eating minutes at small forward where his decreased mobility hurts him. A lot of his regression this year can be directly attributed to confidence issues arising from playing out of position. His 16M cap hit wouldn't be so bad if Deng was playing well. Look at Deng's stats when he's playing power forward. Big jump in production. His defense is far better than Randle's and he can stretch the floor as he can shoot long range. The only reason Deng isn't the starting power forward was the lack of small forwards and Randle's position as a member of the core.
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  29. Another opportunity cost is for Randle's teammates. How many turnovers does Randle indirectly cause due to his lazy screening and lack of off ball movement? His selfish behavior doesn't just affect him; it affects everyone. The guy who should have got the open look who didn't get a shot because Julius wanted to take a bad shot hoping to score more rebounds. The guy who didn't get a rebound because Julius wrestled it from him. Ask Ingram how many rebounds Julius has wrestled away from him. More than a few.
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  31. !=====================================================================!
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  33. There are only so many big contracts a team can handle. They have to prioritize as younger players turn into big contracts. The Lakers only have one more year of cheap Randle then he becomes very expensive. Right now, his trade value is very high as he has a lot of potential. Let's say the team uses Randle to unload the toxic contract of Mozgov.
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  35. Russell, Nance, and Zubac are all RFAs in 2019. So is Paul George. 2019 is when the team is expected to come together and be that playoff contender. That is four expensive contracts for one year. It would help a ton if Randle/Mozgov are off the books saving the team somewhere around 28-30M that year.
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  37. Why Randle? Because of the depth chart of the Lakers is big on power forwards. Deng can slide into starting power forward which is his preferred place. It just means Brewer gets more minutes as a backup small forward which is a good place for him. Robinson would get the call if Nance or Deng gets hurt and he's proven a capable backup who will likely get re-signed for cheap.
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  39. If Mozgov hadn't flatlined his career so hard this year and Zubac didn't show such potential, none of this would be necessary. Since a team can sign at most 4 top salaries and have a decent backup squad, you have to ask: Russell, Ingram, Randle, Zubac, George. Which of the 4 do you keep in 2019 and who leaves? That's assuming the Lakers somehow scam a team to take Mozgov's and/or Deng contracts without taking young players which is a very unlikely scenario.
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  41. If we keep Randle, does it cost us Nance due to salary cap issues? remember Nance is a RFA in 2019 too.
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  43. !======================================================================!
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  45. It's tough. Despite my criticism of Randle here, he's actually one of my favorites to watch when he's engaged. When I talk to my friends about basketball and defend the Lakers, Randle's potential comes up all the time. He's got so much potential. I understand why so many defend him and also why so many trash him. He's very polarizing. If he gets traded and turns into that all-star, the Lakers look stupid. If he stays the way he is now, the Lakers don't get those rings as his selfish play causes too many losses.
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