We are now nearly three months in to the Julius Randle experiment, and early returns have been less than promising for the Minnesota Timberwolves. Struggling to get back to the level they were at last season as a team, there are some real questions about where Randle fits with the Wolves in the long-term.
When Tim Connelly and the front office first agreed to deal Karl-Anthony Towns and acquire Randle, the motivation behind their move was almost entirely based on team finances. You can argue for or against their decision-making process, but the fact is that they wanted to be able to keep guys like Naz Reid and Nickeil Alexander-Walker for the future.
In getting Randle on what is essentially an expiring deal (player option for next season), they gave themselves a window of time with which to evaluate Julius and his overall fit with their roster. If things worked out and he appeared to be a seamless fit, Minnesota could continue about business as usual while gunning for another Western Conference Finals appearance and ideally an NBA championship.
But the flip side of the coin was the prospect of him not being a great fit, in which case the Timberwolves would evaluate their options from there. As of this writing, it appears that is the juncture where we currently stand. Randle has not been a ceiling-raiser for this group, and much of the Wolves fanbase is ready to discard him right now.
Randle has been a clunky fit at best
Does the front office feel the same way? Maybe, but there have been no definitive indicators from sources within the team to say one way or another. With that said, we can use the eye test as well as just pure logical reasoning to determine it is hard to see Randle with this team beyond this season.
All things considered, Julius' player archetype is not what you want operating alongside Rudy Gobert on the interior. With those two and Jaden McDaniels all in the starting lineup, you have three players that opposing defenses do not feel like they have to respect from three-point range. It is no wonder why the spacing is crowded and life is difficult for Anthony Edwards right now.
The truth is that Randle is far from the type of floor-spacing, deep-shooting big man KAT is, and that alone has changed the equation in a big way for the Timberwolves. Before the season, there was reason enough to believe that this differential could be offset by other factors, but we are seeing now that it is an issue big enough to totally hamper this team's output.
If things keep going the way they have been going, it is extremely hard to see the Wolves extending Randle and keeping him around for the long haul. If this is the same vision the front office shares, the question now becomes when, not if, he will be moved, and what kind of return Minnesota can get back. The answers will determine the future of the franchise.