New Los Angeles Lakers head coach Luke Walton has said that he plans on running an offense with the Lakers to similar to what the Golden State Warriors run. As such there will be a number of player comparisons made, and one of the more interesting ones is between Julius Randle and Draymond Green.
The comparison makes some sense as the two are similar physically. Green is also one of the NBA’s best playmakers at the power forward position and Randle share many of the same traits when it comes to his ball-handling and passing.
Many are hoping that Randle can play a similar role to what Green does in Golden State and according to ESPN’s Jovan Buha, Randle sees the similarities and is hoping for something similar:
“Obviously there are a lot of similarities between Draymond and myself,” Randle said. “There will be a lot to learn, but especially with the style of play, it’ll be fun for us to get up and down. Sharing the ball is going to be big for us this year. Just building that chemistry on both sides of the floor.”
Randle has a long ways to go if he plans on making it to Green’s level, though there have been some promising signs. Randle’s rebounding is excellent, and he flashed some playmaking abilities at times. Matching Green’s 7.4 assists per game average shouldn’t be expected, but a marked improvement over his numbers from last season is feasible for Randle.
The other area Randle will need to improve upon if he is to match Green is his defense. Green is one of the NBA’s premier defenders who many believe should have won the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year. Randle has the capabilities to guard multiple positions and will need to show that next year.
Walton will surely look to put Randle in the best positions for him to succeed. If Randle can improve those things, as well as his jump shot which he has already spoken about, everyone could be seeing a whole new Julius Randle when next season comes around.