NBA Trade Rumors 2018: Los Angeles Lakers to Trade Julius Randle?
The anticipated trade deadline of the National Basketball Association arrives this week, and as expected, the Los Angeles Lakers have been a regular part of the rumor mill since they have been speculated to be making moves involving Julius Randle.
Randle has been with the Lakers ever since the team drafted him in 2014 as the overall no. 7 pick. While the player has been a fairly valuable asset to the team, there are reports that the franchise actually has no long-term plans for the 6-foot-9 power forward.
Noted ESPN reporter Adrian Wojnarowski reportedly floated the possibility that the working relationship between Randle and the Lakers would not last a long time for various reasons.
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While Randle is relatively still in his early years of professional basketball, it is important to note that he is on his last days of his rookie contract.
For months now, the Lakers have been rumored to be making room in their salary cap so they could have enough to negotiate for major NBA stars in summer. Randle's performance and growing NBA experience would mean a higher pay if the Lakers want to renew his contract. This suggests that if the team decides to let go of Randle, it would be more because of the salary cap space they want to preserve.
With these speculations on the surface, other reports suggest some possibilities for what team Randle could be playing for next. One of the interesting ones involve him going to the Boston Celtics.
Sporting News commented that the Boston front office has done a good job in making sure they do not have much of a problem in their salary cap traffic while also stashing a good lineup of upcoming draft picks and a deep rotation and bench.
If ever the Lakers and the Celtics were to discuss the possibilities, the latter could entice the other team with a slot at the 2018 first round draft pick -- something the Lakers do not have -- in a deal that will involve Randle.
Randle currently averages 14 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 0.6 blocks per game. Meanwhile, the NBA trade deadline is on Thursday, Feb. 8.
