Game 73: Portland Trail Blazers (34-38) @ Los Angeles Lakers (21-51) - 9:30 PM ET

[milesfides]

Julius Randle really needs a point guard or offense who gets him the ball where he can convert at a high percentage, e.g., in transition, off screens, cutting to the basket, etc.

He isn't very good at creating his own shot, and he's not great at shooting the ball.

He has become a more willing and better passer, so credit that to him.

Individually, he needs to become a better shooter, move better without the ball, or become more of a low post presence. I think shooting is probably more realistic for him, but he needs teammates who can find him. He's a bit lost out there.

Right now, he's kind of like Kenneth Faried, who is a beast on the boards and can finish around the rim when the lane is open - but with an inconsistent motor, because that energy often is not sustainable.

It's what happens when you're undersized and you're trying to compensate for a lack of skill by using strength and energy.

On the right team, I think Randle could be better engaged, and his energy conserved, and a bit less exposed.

[Slava]

Faried is the laziest comparison you can find for Randle. We score a whopping 1.3 pts per possession with Randle as the ball handler in transition, which includes finding open shooters fanning out to the 3 point line, a skill Faried could never replicate. There's also some really high efficiency stat with using Randle as part of a give and go with one of the guards (Russell, Young, Clarkson) etc both of which even made it to opposition coaches' playbooks according to Zach Lowe.

I'm not Randle's biggest fan and think we can get more shooting out of that PF position but describing him as a tweener is like reading out of his draft scouting book with little to no effort put in acknowledging the variations in his game that Luke has extracted in this one season alone.

[milesfides]

How often do you find Randle as the ball handler in transition?

Like I said, we just don't have have a point guard or offense that maximizes his talents.

But don't overstate it. He's not a point forward like Odom or Giannis, he's not dynamic enough as a passer or shooter in transition - he's almost always taking it himself.

Don't get lost in one stat. It's not like our best offense is putting Randle as our point guard. He's good when he pushes the ball off the rebound, but it's not a mainstay of an offense.

DeAndre Jordan, Dwight Howard, and Danilo Gallinari are top 5 in the NBA in points per shot, but nobody is going to build an offense around them. I'd suggest not getting so lost in one stat; it could blind you to common sense.

[Mirjalovic]

How often do you find Randle as the ball handler in transition?

often

he's not dynamic enough as a passer or shooter in transition - he's almost always taking it himself.

i don't think you watch the Lakers.

Don't get lost in the stats. It's not like our best offense is putting Randle as our point guard. He's good when he pushes the ball off the rebound, but it's not a mainstay of an offense.

don't get lost in wall of text. Watch the game. Read the posts. His handoff passes on halfcourt set are deadly and no one suggested to put Randle as fulltime PG

DeAndre Jordan, Dwight Howard, and Danilo Gallinari are top 5 in the NBA in points per shot, but nobody is going to build an offense around them. I'd suggest not getting so lost in one stat; it could blind you to common sense.

irrelevant.

anyone who watch the game knew Randle could create it in transtition. anyone who watch the game knew you can't run the offense through DeAndre Jordan.

[Slava]

How often do you find Randle as the ball handler in transition?

Like I said, we just don't have have a point guard or offense that maximizes his talents.

But don't overstate it. He's not a point forward like Odom or Giannis, he's not dynamic enough as a passer or shooter in transition - he's almost always taking it himself.

Don't get lost in one stat. It's not like our best offense is putting Randle as our point guard. He's good when he pushes the ball off the rebound, but it's not a mainstay of an offense.

DeAndre Jordan, Dwight Howard, and Danilo Gallinari are top 5 in the NBA in points per shot, but nobody is going to build an offense around them. I'd suggest not getting so lost in one stat; it could blind you to common sense.

I think you misunderstood. The points per possession was not for him alone but for the entire team on plays with Randle as ball handler or a player involved in a give and go. His ability to make reads on the run is a very rare gift for a player his size. Of course our best offense is not with him as PG or even point forward but it is one of the many things he brings to the table to not be labeled "Kenneth Faried with a low motor".

Yeah he's not Giannis but a Giannis comes around once in a life time and you don't discount the players you have because they are not Giannis or Lebron. If you do that you are praying for a miracle, not common sense.

[milesfides]

You're making a straw man argument here.

I'm not criticizing Randle for not being Giannis. You're simply reading too deeply into one stat to inflate his ability. And on that subject, you seem to agree, because I also stated he needs it in transition or on the move. I suggested he needed a point guard or an offense that would help his game.

And I didn't say he was Kenneth faried with a low motor. I said, like Kenneth faried, he has an inconsistent motor because he just runs out of energy. They're both making an impact in the game usually with all hustle, but that's hard to do for 30 minutes a game if you're an undersized player and don't have (faried) or aren't applying (randle) dynamic skills.