Fansided

NBA Free Agency 2018: 20 best players available

By Micah Wimmer

NEW ORLEANS, LA - MARCH 22: Isaiah Thomas #3 of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts before a game against the New Orleans Pelicans at the Smoothie King Center on March 22, 2018 in New Orleans, Louisiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LA - MARCH 22: Isaiah Thomas #3 of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts before a game against the New Orleans Pelicans at the Smoothie King Center on March 22, 2018 in New Orleans, Louisiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) /
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SALT LAKE CITY, UT – APRIL 03: Julius Randle #30 of the Los Angeles Lakers controls the ball against the Utah Jazz in a game at Vivint Smart Home Arena on April 3, 2018 in Salt Lake City, Utah. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Gene Sweeney Jr./Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Julius Randle
SALT LAKE CITY, UT – APRIL 03: Julius Randle #30 of the Los Angeles Lakers controls the ball against the Utah Jazz in a game at Vivint Smart Home Arena on April 3, 2018 in Salt Lake City, Utah. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Gene Sweeney Jr./Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Julius Randle /

8. Julius Randle

Julius Randle, along with Jabari Parker will be one of the more intriguing restricted free agents to watch this offseason. It appears as if the Lakers, four years after drafting him, still are not one hundred percent sure where he fits in their long term plans, or if he’s better off being let go of in the hopes of using the money they’d spend on him on a superstar free agent instead. I’d expect the Lakers to try to take a wait-and-see sort of approach to Randle, but I also expect another team to quickly give him an offer sheet to try to undercut the Lakers’ plans. At this point, it seems as if Randle has become, for both Lakers fans and executives, less of an actual player than a potential contract.

But this obscures just how good of a player Randle can be at his best and, considering that he’s not yet 24, the best we’ve seen so far may just be a prelude to his eventual peak a few years down the line. After the All Star Break last season, Randle started every game and rewarded Coach Luke Walton with his confidence by nearly averaging a 20-10 line (19.5 and 9.4, to be exact) during that period on 55 percent shooting. There had never been any doubts about Randle’s capability as a rebounder, but his ability to get the ball in the hoop had been more of an issue. This year Randle shot over fifty percent from the field for the first time – quite handily too – and it looks like the promise he offered as a lauded draft pick years ago is coming to fruition now.

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