After the Los Angeles Lakers selected former Kentucky Wildcat Julius Randle with the seventh pick, he hopped on a conference call with all the Los Angles media awaiting to speak to him in New York. Of course, Randle expressed nothing but excitement at the news of both being a Laker and working out alongside Kobe Bryant, although he did surprise us by revealing that Bryant already sent him a congratulatory text. Just as surprising, Randle brought up the possibility of foot surgery, leaving the door wide open for speculation. Though Randle expects he’ll be able to play in NBA Summer League, he did say it would depend on the advice of team doctors once he got to Los Angeles. Check out the full media session in the video above. For a transcription of the highlights, see below.
Initial impression after being selected by the Lakers:
“I was excited. This was the organization that I wanted to go to. I couldn’t be in a better situation for me. I’m just really excited to get things started there.”
On playing with Kobe Bryant:
“It’s going to be amazing. I grew up a huge fan of Kobe — he was always my idol, my favorite player growing up and now I have a chance to pick his brain and learn a lot from him. I couldn’t ask for a better situation like I said.”
On playing in NBA Summer League/foot issues:
“I think I will. I’m healthy. I have no problem with my foot. I haven’t talked to the team doctor or anything whether they want to do something or not, but we’ll see and I’ll have that conversation with them when I get there.”
“They might want to do a surgery, but I’m not sure. Honestly, I really don’t know what to expect. I know that if I do, do a surgery or anything, I’ll be ready way before the start of the season by training camp. It’s obviously up to the team doctor and we’ll discuss what’s best for me and what the risk is.”
On getting chills the first time he walked into the Lakers facility before his Lakers pre-draft workout – Did he feel the same way about other facilities?
“Honestly the Laker workout when I got there, I shot the night before my actual workout, and I was there and I was like man, it just feels like home. It was the place I was most comfortable with, and honestly it just felt like the right situation. They didn’t think I would be there at seven, but I was really happy to be there at seven because I knew it was the perfect fit for me.”
On when he’s coming to LA to meet the team:
“I talked to Mr. Kupchak and he said they want to try to get me out there Sunday and maybe do something on Monday, but we’ll play it by ear.”
On how much he knows about the city of LA:
“I know a lot about it. I remember playing in the Elite 24 out there and playing games out there and it was always my favorite city to go to. I was always excited to go to LA because I loved being there.”
On whether or not he saw Kobe’s congratulations on Twitter:
“I haven’t seen that yet…but he did text me and said he looked forward to seeing me and he’d link up with me when he gets back in the country, so I look forward to talking to him a little bit.”
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VIDEO: How Does Mitch Kupchak Think Kobe Bryant Will Like Julius Randle?