NBA
Julius Randle To Sign With The Pelicans
When LeBron James joined the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night, the main question then became this- Which players will Magic Johnson and Rob Pelinka surround James with?
Out of all of the young players the Lakers have, Julius Randle’s future with the team was up in the air. On Monday evening, Randle’s situation with the Lakers organization finally came to a conclusion.
According to ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne, Randle asked the Lakers to be renounced once he realized he wasn’t in their long term plans. It shouldn’t be too surprising because with James on board, the 2018-19 Lakers will be different. The Lakers decided to grant him his wish and renounced him, which made him an unrestricted free agent.
Former Wildcat On The Move
Randle wasn’t a free agent for long, as he went on to sign a two year, $18 million deal with the New Orleans Pelicans.
According to ESPN Senior NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski, Anthony Davis, who’s the unquestioned face of the Pelicans franchise, recruited him tenaciously.
The Pelicans listened to their franchise player and that is the smart thing to do. Randle should thrive playing with Davis. He can run the floor and can play bully ball in the paint. This move also will likely signal the end of DeMarcus Cousins in New Orleans.
Last season for the Lakers, Randle averaged a career high 16.1 points, eight rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game. He also was the only Lakers player to play in all 82 regular season games. That definitely should be encouraging for the Pelicans because they’re getting a durable player that can get even better. The Pelicans now have Davis, Randle, and Mirotic in the front court. They hope their front court unit, along with guard Jrue Holiday, helps them get to the next level next season.
