IGSaint wrote:HoopsterJones wrote:IGSaint wrote:
I don't get this. Randle has shown just as much flashes of greatness as have jabari, wiggins, exum etc. I don't know how you can complain about Randle's 3 turnovers(ESPECIALLY SINCE HE"S A ROOKIE) and not complain about the turnovers that Exum, Wiggins, and Parker have caused. Randle is a 6'9 big man who has the handles of a guard and can either post up or take his man off the dribble depending on the situation. From what I've seen other than the rebounds, Randle has been on of the better lottery propects showing out during this summer league.
Randle hasn't impressed me a whole lot. He looks to be a solid player, but he lacks the length you'd like to see in a big man (6'11" wingspan). He has legit size and can muscle shots up, but again we'll see. His 12 ppg 4 rpg on sub 45% FG in Summer League doesn't wow me. I watched the game against GS too, and he was making terrible decisions down the stretch that let GS climb back in the game. Jabari, McDermott, TJ Warren, and Wiggins has impressed me more out of the lottery guys.
Randle has the same arm length and size as Blake griffin and Kevin Love. And Griffin has done well bullying at the nba level so concerns for Randle's size are overblown. And it is summer league so being overly concerned with shooting percentage doesn't make sense. Until yesterday jabari parker had been shooting 37% and Wiggins is shooting under 40% for summer league. Exum had an awful shooting game the other day too going 1-8. So it's not like the summer league should be used as some sort of prognosticator of future success. Looking at the positives of Randle though and he has shown flashes of brilliance. He has shown he can take his man off the dribble to score or go into an effective postup. He has also shown that he can be a point forward by passing it to the open man should he get double teamed. How many big men in the league do you know that can do all that? Griffin, Love, Anthony Davis,? Those are some good people to be in company for Randle should he keep developing which I know he will.
^This is how you evaluate talent in Summer League. You look at the talent on the floor and how it can best be used in a real game. You do not evaluate a rookie in summer league based on situational awareness and box score stats. Summer League is akin to jungle ball, just a bunch of guys trying to stand out and earn a contract whether it be for the NBA, D-League or European scouts. Randle already has a guaranteed contract, his teammates don't.
Just evaluating Randle's raw talent alone, he's better than I expected. I didn't know he could handle the ball as well as he's shown. When he drives inside the paint it reminds me of Lebron, bodies just bounce off of him and they have to foul him (he has no off-hand to speak of but neither did a lot of pros when they entered the league). He has similar strength and foot speed, but with a wider base to bang with the bigs in the paint. We haven't seen that reflect in the rebound numbers because they have him playing as more of a point-forward from the perimeter.
I'd like to see them play him as more of a traditional post-up 4 so he can attack closer to the basket. I think they don't have a lot of faith in the guards to throw him entry passes, so they have him on the perimeter to ensure he gets enough touches.
I like that when the game is tight going down the stretch, he seeks out the ball. He has a winning attitude. Last night 2 points going into the 4th quarter, 12 points in the 4th. Against GS he called for the ball in the clutch and kept taking it to the rim.
Passing, better than I realized. He's been driving and kicking out to open shooters
off the dribble. Did not know he could do that. He's been dropping it off to teammates under the basket. Pleasant surprise.
Defense is going to be an issue at the next level largely because of his wingspan. If placed next to a rim-protecting center, it won't be as much of an issue. He measured at the combine with a 7'0" wingspan and 8'9.5" standing reach, compared to Blake Griffin, Thaddeus Young and Kevin Love who each have 6'11.25" wingspan. Those guys are able to make up for it in other ways. Randle will need to develop a midrange J and a right-hand if he wants to even begin to be compared to those guys. Point being, the wing span will not be a major hinderance if he works on his skill-set.
He's shown just as many flashes as Wiggins, Exum and Parker. I don't see how anyone can say otherwise unless they're just reading box scores. When he's at his best, I can't think of any 4 in the league that has his unique combination of talents. We'll just have to wait and see if he's able to bring it all together.
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My RealGM account is old enough to drink. 
