Los Angeles Lakers: 5 players with the most to prove in 2017-18

4. Julius Randle, PF

Last season, I would say that Julius Randle had the best performance of the Lakers’ young stars. Although he’s still rather inconsistent and immature at times, the former Kentucky sensation showed impressive progress as a tough, multi-dimensional power forward.

With that being said, I’m not sure Johnson sees him as a prominent piece of the Lakers’ future plan. That doesn’t mean his mind can’t be changed between now and the end of next season.

So that’s exactly what Randle is going to spend the next year doing. In fact, he’s already gotten off to a good start this offseason, taking his training to a new level:

Getting into excellent shape is a great start. However, he needs to be more efficient on offense and get back to dominating the boards. He’s been working at expanding his range, hoping to develop into more of a stretch-4 than an athletic but limited power forward.

The real problem is the fact that he’s going to be a restricted free agent next offseason. He’s shown enough potential to warrant a big contract offer, which could force the Lakers’ hand. If they aren’t willing to match a monster deal, they may be forced to let him walk. Realistically, landing two superstars via free agency while potentially overpaying for Randle could become more expensive than the team would like.

So Randle has something to prove to himself and the Lakers. He’ll also be trying to prove to other teams that he’s worthy of a massive offer sheet.