Some drama brewed today between free agent big man Enes Kanter and former Lakers forward Julius Randle. For some background, Randle left the Lakers last offseason after the team opted not to bring him back in free agency and experienced a breakout campaign playing in New Orleans.
Meanwhile, Kanter had an up and down season. After finding himself riding the bench for the majority of the year in New York, Kanter wound up being dealt to the Portland Trail Blazers where he played a crucial role in their run to the Western Conference Finals.
Former Laker Julius Randle And Julius Randle Exchange Public Shots
“I feel like he’s Julius Randle with hops.”
@EnesKanter on Zion Williamson
Enes Kanter struck the first blow when he called Zion Williamson “overhyped” and offered him a backhanded compliment of calling him “Julius Randle with hops” while snickering on air. Clearly, this wouldn’t sit well with Randle who is coming off a career year and one of the league’s most overlooked young talents.
However, Randle would get the last laugh as he took to Twitter shortly after Kanter’s segment went viral. Randle’s memory serves him well too as the last time that Kanter’s Blazers met with Randle and the Pelicans, Randle dropped 45 points, 11 rebounds, and 6 assists – also 3 blocks and 2 steals.
Kanter has never been one to bite his tongue and regularly speaks his mind, however, this time around it seems that Kanter might have been better off just keeping his mouth closed.
Enes Kanter Reported to Draw Interest from Los Angeles Lakers
Free agent center Enes Kanter is expected to receive interest from the Portland Trail Blazers, Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics on June 30, league sources tell Yahoo Sports.
Aside from getting bodied by Julius Randle, Chris Haynes reported that Enes Kanter is likely to draw interest from the Lakers heading into free agency. The Lakers are desperate for a big man and while Kanter probably will want to avoid playing for the league minimum, he might not find himself with many better offers on the table.
Despite his effectiveness, Kanter is a dying breed in the NBA as a traditional low-post back to the basket big man. Not mobile enough to run the floor in transition or switch onto guards, Kanter has become a defensive liability at times in the modern NBA.
It should be interesting to see how teams value what Kanter brings to the table in free agency and the most likely scenario for the Lakers to land Kanter involves not landing a max free agent and instead allocating a few extra million dollars Enes’ way.
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Lakers Free Agent Target Enes Kanter Takes Shot at Julius Randle