2015 NBA Draft: Which Top Prospects Fit Best With Julius Randle?
Feb 21, 2015; Lexington, KY, USA; Kentucky Wildcats forward Karl-Anthony Towns (12) shoots the ball against Auburn Tigers guard
Malcolm Canada(00) in the second half at Rupp Arena. The Kentucky Wildcats defeated the Auburn Tigers 110-75. Mandatory Credit: Mark Zerof-USA TODAY Sports
1. Karl-Anthony Towns
Here you have it, potentially the next dominant front court in the NBA. However, the Lakers would likely have to receive a top three pick in order to be in prime position to select the phenom from Kentucky. Towns is everything that Randle is not. He is extremely long, with a 7’3″ wingspan, an elite shot blocker, and can spread the floor.
Let’s start with the shot blocking ability of Towns. He is part of the 1-2 punch along with Willie Caulley-Stein that anchors the most dominant defense in college basketball. Towns statistics speak for themselves on the defensive end. First of all, Towns only plays about 20 minutes per game, so per 40 stats are more effective when measuring Towns’ impact. Towns averages a ridiculous 4.6 blocks per 40 minutes and is 2nd in the SEC in blocks per game. Towns leads the nation in defensive efficiency and is seventh in block percentage.
Every elite NBA team needs a rim protector and Towns will definitely be that guy.
Towns’ hasn’t gotten the chance to show off his jump shot in college but when he does it looks pretty good. He has a good touch and a high release point. Town’s jumper will only get better and the better it gets the more room Randle will have to bully his way inside.
Towns and Randle can both run the court very well. Having to worry about two big men running the court would be a nightmare for opposing teams, as their big men would run out of gas by the end of the game. Letting Clarkson develop as the primary ball handler, running pick and rolls with two promising big men, sounds very promising as a core for the future.
Towns and Randle would form a ridiculous rebounding duo. Towns averages 12.9 rebounds per 40 minutes and is second in the SEC in rebounding percentage.
Most teams in the NBA don’t have one dominant big man down low. Imagine if the Lakers had two. Randle and Okafor have too many common issues. The good thing about Towns is that he makes up for all of Randle’s weaknesses. Why not build a team the old school way? Add in a couple of shooters and a perimeter scorer to a pair of monster big men and the Lakers rebuilding process might not take so long.