Los Angeles Lakers: Offseason Stock Watch

Stock Down: Julius Randle

To be clear, I am high on Randle as a player in the future, and even this season. I think he has the tools to be dominant in the post, and I have voiced my support for him to grab as many minutes as possible. However, with the way the roster is currently constructed, that could be a problem.

The frontcourt is absolutely loaded right now, with Carlos Boozer, Ryan Kelly, Ed Davis, and Jordan Hill all standing in the way of Randle getting meaningful (and plentiful) minutes on the court. We already know that Boozer is likely to start, so Randle will already probably take a minutes hit there, and the other guys will definitely play some as the season begins. Currently, this area of the team is a cluttered mess, and the roles have no hold to them other than what we have heard from the head coach.

Of course, the rotation will shuffle, and it could be Randle that emerges as the best of the bunch right out of the gate. But right now, it appears as though he will be in a dogfight for every minute that he can get as we set out into the preseason.