He did not capture an NCAA Tournament Championship at the University of Kentucky, but Julius Randle was one of the most talented players and leaders to come from John Calipari’s program at the time.
The three-time NBA All-Star is on his fourth team, but he has a special group around him.
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People recognize Anthony Edwards as the leader of the Minnesota Timberwolves and potential face of the league, but Randle is the muscle of the unit. A former first-round pick of the 2014 NBA Draft, Randle averaged 18.7 points and 7.1 rebounds per game in the regular season. He assisted the T’Wolves in knocking out his former team, the Los Angeles Lakers, in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs. Randle totaled double figures in points in all five games, recording 22.6 points per contest.
He’s brought the same energy to the second round against Golden State. Randle has the Warriors down 3-1 and is one victory away from advancing Minnesota into the Western Conference Finals. He posted a double-double in games two and three, while collecting 31 points, five rebounds, three assists, a block, and a steal in Game 4. Randle has endured adversity, but he’s also had help to face challenges better. The 6-foot-9, 250-pounder credits his leadership for the Timberwolves to the late Kobe Bryant.
Bryant was Randle’s teammate for the Lakers from 2014 to 2018.
“I’ve been through a lot, I had a great mentor in Kobe.”
Julius Randle discusses facing adversity in his career and credits Kobe Bryant for showing him how ???? pic.twitter.com/Fj7o4rXKGr
— NBA (@NBA) May 13, 2025
“I have battled through a lot in my career, to be honest,” Randle said after Minnesota’s 117-110 victory over Golden State in Game 4. “In the first game of my career, I broke my leg. I’ve been through a lot, but I had a great mentor in Kobe. He never let me pout or get down on myself. His things was always ‘what’s next? How can you improve? How can you get better?’ I always took that mentality with me.”
Randle has gotten better throughout his career, but now he has a chance to reach the conference finals.
He will lead the T’Wolves in Game 5 on Wednesday against the Warriors.
Stephen M. Smith is a writer for Ball Exclusives. You can follow him on X via @CoachingMSmith.
