Lakers: Five positive things to take from the 2017-2018 season

2. Julius Randle is a lot better than anyone thought

You can say that you expected Julius Randle to be as good as he was this season. Either you are a very optimistic fan that happened to be right on this one occasion, or you are lying. Julius Randle is a great player and has been great for the Lakers in his short NBA career, but the leap he made in the second half of the 2017-2018 season.

The first half of the season was textbook Julius Randle. He was good for 12-16 points a night and around half as many rebounds. He lost the starting job to Larry Nance Jr. and rookie sensation Kyle Kuzma was receiving all of the love.

However, Randle was granted the hybrid power forward/center role after Larry Nance Jr. was traded. Since then, Randle has been sensational.

Since the All-Star Break, Randle is averaging 20.3 points, 9.8 rebounds and 3.3 assists. The stats do not tell the entire story; Randle has been physically bullying his opposition and is playing like a true all-star. Personally, I see Randle as a Zach Randolph 2.0.

Laker fans should be very excited for Randle in the future. Randle essentially played his way into a re-signing with the Lakers, something that did not seem possible prior to the season. Laker fans should hope that the Lakers make the right decision and re-sign Randle.