After winning a franchise-low 27 games last season, the only positive for the Los Angeles Lakers was getting a lottery pick in the 2014 NBA draft.
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Fortunately, the team may have potentially struck gold in the draft by landing Kentucky’s Julius Randle with the seventh overall pick. Randle is widely considered one of the best players in the draft and could to be a perennial All-Star in the near future.
New head coach Byron Scott was recently sat down for a Q & A session with Mike Trudell of Lakers.com and was asked about what he wants Randle to accomplish before training camp opens. Scott responded by saying the following:
“We’re been working on his post game and face up game, but the biggest thing is to get him in shape. As a rookie, you don’t want to come into training camp out of shape. Then the season is halfway over by the time you get acclimated. We want him to get in great shape right now, and then he can start learning the system on both ends of the floor. We’re already putting him through a lot of defensive things right now to get him going.”
Scott is adamant about Randle not coming into training camp out of shape. It will be all on the rookie to prove that he’s up to the task as it could easily impact his playing time heading into the 2014-15 NBA season.
At this point in time, the consensus is that veteran forward Carlos Boozer will be the starter at the four spot. It will likely be Boozer’s job to lose, but Randle could make things interesting if he excels in the minutes he’s given at the position.
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