Julius Randle
We previously mentioned Julius Randle as a potential fit for the Atlanta Hawks last offseason. Instead, he was snapped up by the New Orleans Pelicans as a potential high-upside backup for Anthony Davis, as they looked to improve upon their surprising four-game sweep of the Blazers in the 2018 Playoffs.
Of course, that was not to be, as Davis’s trade request sent the organization and the team into a tailspin, which ultimately ended up with them finishing with a 33-49 record – well out of the playoff hunt.
Despite that, Randle showed his dominant scoring ability by producing a career-best season with the Pels.
In 73 games, 49 of which were starts, Randle produced new career-highs of 21.4 points per game, 0.7 steals per game and 0.6 blocks per game while shooting 52.4 percent from the field with a 60 percent true shooting percentage.
Perhaps most noticeably for Randle is the addition of a three-point jumper. Though his three-point attempt rate was under 20 percent (17.9%), that number represented a career-high, as did 2.7 three-point attempts per game, 195 total on the season and, most importantly, a 34.4 percent clip from downtown on the season.
Randle remains nearly unstoppable in the paint, as he is too quick for slower bigs and too big for small-ball centers at 6-foot-9 and 250 pounds.
Though his fit with John Collins might be suspect, the Atlanta Hawks would be a great fit for Randle if he declines his $8.8 million player option per Spotrac.