Starting with his time spent on the New York Knicks, Julius Randle has been one of the more polarizing players in the NBA. He was even more so within the Knicks fan base, and now it is the same with the Minnesota Timberwolves fan base.
Sure, he often puts up All-Star numbers, and Randle has been named to three of those. It’s the sometimes lackluster effort on defense, the sometimes pouty demeanor on the court, the sometimes turnover-prone ways, and the sometimes slowing down of the offense that can frustrate the fans.
If you go by social media, many would like to see Randle traded, but does he have all that much value around the league?
Randle isn't an easy player to find a clean fit for
Let’s keep in mind that all it takes is one team. There have been numerous instances where a player has been deemed untradeable, yet his team finds a way to ship him off.Â
Those players have had worse contracts than Randle’s as well. Currently playing on the first year of a three-year, $100 million deal that Julius signed in the offseason, he is signed for about $33.3 million next season before there is a player option at $35.8 million in 2027-28.Â
But even if he could get traded, there’s a fairly good chance that the Timberwolves wouldn’t receive equal value coming back. Randle is 31 years old, and he will be 32 early next season. I’m not even sure that Minnesota had huge interest in him, other than that they wanted to get off Karl-Anthony Towns’ contract.
A known playoff underperformer, the 12-year veteran finally had his first good postseason in 2025, until his momentum slowed a bit in the conference finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
While his scoring has improved this year in the regular season compared to his first one in Minnesota, it has come in a less efficient manner. Randle hasn’t found his 3-point touch all season, particularly since the All-Star break. He has also seen his accuracy from all over the court fall off a cliff when the Timberwolves are squared up against a top-five defensive team.
Try to think of a clean fit for Randle amongst the other 29 teams (especially now that he’s into his 30s). Hard to do, right? It's even harder when you try to find a team that would give the Wolves a clear co-star for Anthony Edwards in return.
Maybe the Minnesota fan base that wants Randle dealt will change their minds with another strong postseason showing by both the team and Julius.
If that doesn’t happen, though, there is also a chance they see either that it is rather difficult to move him or that the return is somewhat underwhelming.