Lonzo Ball Recalls Lakers Limiting Julius Randle to “Screen and Rebound” Duties
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During the July 22, 2026 episode of his “Ball In The Family” podcast, Chicago Bulls guard Lonzo Ball said the Los Angeles Lakers once instructed forward Julius Randle to do little more than set picks and chase rebounds.
Ball compared that directive to a recent Bulls film session in which rookie Matas Buzelis was sharply criticized by head coach Billy Donovan. “It was very similar to when they told Julius Randle on the Lakers to just screen and rebound and don’t do nothing else,” Ball said. “I’m like, bro, we’re in the NBA—these are real players and you’re putting them in a box.”
Randle, drafted seventh overall by Los Angeles in 2014, averaged a team-best 16.1 points and 8.0 rebounds in the 2017-18 season despite the reported restrictions. He left the Lakers as a free agent in July 2018, later earning multiple All-Star selections and capturing the NBA Most Improved Player award in 2021.
Ball’s remarks revisit a period when the Lakers were assembling a high-profile young core that included Ball, Randle, Brandon Ingram, Kyle Kuzma, Josh Hart and Alex Caruso. Most of those players were eventually traded as the franchise pursued championship-caliber veterans.
Kuzma Still Proud of 2017 Summer League Run
Kuzma, the 2017 Las Vegas Summer League Championship Game MVP, recently called that squad “the best Summer League team of all time.” The roster, featuring Ball, Ingram, Hart and Caruso, won the tournament title, though Randle was not on the summer unit.
The Lakers ultimately ended their rebuild by acquiring superstar talent, culminating in the 2020 NBA championship. Ball, now with Chicago, remains outspoken about player development and the balance between defined roles and individual growth.
Source: LakersNation.com
