Julius Randle is an outstanding player for the Minnesota Timberwolves in the playoffs.
Back at the beginning of the season, the Minnesota Timberwolves were shaken by a great trade. The move brought Julius Randle to the team, replacing the overall overall pick of the previous overall pick of the franchise star for several years before Edwards arrived.
A widely held view was that the Timberwolves lost trade. But these days it looks like a win-win.
During his stint with the New York Knicks, Randle had a bad history of playoff performances.
But this season he has reset his story. His size and ability to acquire basketball unlocked the Minnesota Timberwolves’ offense. This was previously very dependent on Anthony Edwards.
In his first playoff run with the Timberwolves, Randle averaged 23.9ppg, 5.9 RPGs and plenty of assists with 50.9% shooting from the field.
These numbers make him the fifth player in the last 60 years, and averages these splits in the team’s first 10 playoff games.
LeBron James, Kawi Leonard, Willie Anderson and Walter Davis are the only four players to achieve the same number.
Drafted by La Lakers, Randle described how Kobe Bryant helped him early in his career and how this is affecting him now.
After struggling with the Knicks in the playoffs, many began to rob him in pressure situations.
However, the forward has stepped up into all Timberwolves stats categories, and is key to their chances to win them all.
Earlier in the season, it seemed Randle wasn’t going well with the Timberwolves.
But as the season progressed, he became a tool part of the team.
Rudy Gobert recently thrilled praise for Randle’s work ethic. This is something many other players on the roster have noticed.
As a veteran, Randle has instilled some major values in his teammates, and coach Chris Finch has mentioned it before.
His raw physicality makes it difficult for the enemy to protect him and makes things worse, he has incredible footwork and can make shots that are difficult to stop.
Heading into the Conference Finals, where the opponent is either the OKC Thunder or the Denver Nuggets, the Timberwolves can expect a tough fight.
Last year, the Dallas Mavericks dominated in the third round, and there was nothing they could do as Cat couldn’t match the physicality of MAVS players.
It doesn’t matter that Randle is on the roster this time, as he’s not a player who’s falling back from anyone and that’s a big help to the team.