While the Los Angeles Lakers are diligently preparing for the NBA Draft, members of the young core are hard at work getting ready for next season and occasionally having some fun in their spare time.
One of the perks of playing in Los Angeles is the media recognition that comes with it, and young power forward Julius Randle parlayed his Laker’s fame into a spot on a recent episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live.
On the show, Kimmel complained about the lack of goofy local TV ads featuring NBA players these days. They do still exist (Sacramento has the Pizza Guy ads and San Antonio boasts some hilarious H-E-B Grocery spots), but they aren’t as prevalent as they used to be.
In order to rectify the problem, Kimmel has Randle appear in a low-budget ad for a local rocking chair store and hilarity ensues:
A return to the golden age of local advertising with @Lakers Julius Randle @J30_Randle for #TheRockingChairStore pic.twitter.com/ZNEt57po5W
— Jimmy Kimmel (@jimmykimmel) June 10, 2017
For Randle, the increased exposure is coming at just the right time. He has just one year remaining on his rookie contract, and then will likely be a restricted free agent next summer unless the Lakers work out a deal in the next few months to give him an extension.
Randle has already radically improved his body this summer in preparation for a contract year season. Last year, he increased his scoring efficiency while also becoming a bit more of a distributor on the floor, racking up an impressive 3.6 assists per game, good for third in the league among power forwards.
After the All-Star break, Randle began experimenting by increasing his range out to the three-point line. He only shot 28 percent from downtown, but if he can add that shot to his arsenal over the summer while showing moderate improvement in his other skills we could see a breakout campaign from the talented, and funny, big-man next season.