NBA Trade Rumors: It May Be a While Before the Los Angeles Lakers Move Julius Randle
Randle has remained productive in his new bench role
Julius Randle's name has been frequently mentioned in trade rumors throughout the early part of this NBA season, and there are reasons for why that is the case.
Though Randle has shown that he can produce capably at the NBA level, he has not blossomed into the kind of player that could serve as the foundation for the next great iteration of the Los Angeles Lakers.
Granted, no one on the Lakers has really flashed that kind of superstar potential just yet, but it seems that the team's higher-ups are open to investing more on their other young guys such as Lonzo Ball, Kyle Kuzma, Brandon Ingram and even Larry Nance Jr. ahead of Randle
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Still, Randle has continued to show the team that he is worth having around.
Even in a reduced role, Randle has continued to put up solid numbers as the first big off the bench. His numbers on Basketball-Reference even suggest that he has turned into a more efficient scorer this season, with his effective field goal percentage in particular looking mighty impressive.
Furthermore, as the Los Angeles Times' Tania Ganguli noted in a recent article, the Lakers also play better defense when Randle and center Brook Lopez are on the floor at the same time.
The Lakers have their sights set on making the playoffs this season, and it would seem that holding on to Randle and giving him consistent minutes would help significantly in that regard.
Maybe the Lakers will need to trade Randle eventually, especially since he is likely to get a raise this offseason as a restricted free agent, but they do not necessarily need to do so right now.
If the Lakers really are determined to finally put an end to their string of disappointing campaigns by earning a playoff berth this season, then trading Randle later in the summer as opposed to in-season would help them meet their goal.
More news about the latest NBA trade rumors should be made available soon.
