Metta World Peace is a player that no one wants to mess with while on the basketball floor. World Peace plays extremely physical and never backs down from anyone while being stronger than most in the NBA at the small forward position.
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Although no longer in the NBA and merely a spectator at Los Angeles Lakers games, World Peace can still be seen at the team’s practice facility in El Segundo from time to time. Most recently, the one-time NBA champion worked out with second-year forward Julius Randle at the team’s facility and had nothing but high praise for the up-and-comer.
On Monday, World Peace made an appearance on Max and Marcellus on ESPN 710 radio. Metta spoke in-depth about working out with Randle multiple times over the summer and gave an interesting comparison to a current NBA superstar while co-hosting the show with Max Kellerman:
“I think he’s really quick. He’s quick and strong at the same time, which is tough. It’s like LeBron [James]. LeBron is a bit more experienced. And if he gets that, and learns how to use angles and use his body, he’s going to be tough.”
Randle may have been on a minutes restriction during the NBA Summer League, but he did show flashes of his potential and impressive strength while in Las Vegas recently.
Randle displayed a quickness seldom seen at the power forward position and an ability to get to the basket at will. Although Randle didn’t have much of a problem getting into the paint, the 20-year-old did struggle to finish at the rim. The Lakers forward was clearly still trying to shake the rust off after missing 81 of 82 games in his rookie campaign and will need more time to show his true potential.
A comparison to LeBron is obviously a stretch at this point, especially with such a small sample size for Randle. World Peace was onto something when talking about the comparable strength and quickness as Randle may ultimately prove to be a player with the same type of physicality as the four-time NBA MVP.
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