The sellout crowd at the Stan Sheriff Center for the Los Angeles Lakers vs. Utah Jazz final preseason game in Hawaii got their money’s worth on Tuesday, from Metta World Peace diving over chairs for loose balls to Trevor Booker taking a swing at Roy Hibbert and being ejected before the Jazz ultimately took this one in overtime. Then, there was D’Angelo Russell who caused a quick state of panic, when he fell to the hardwood and was unable to get up. Luckily, although he was ruled out for the remainder of the game, the Lakers say he only suffered a bruised glute.
Lou Williams led the Lakers in scoring with 20 points off the bench, while Roy Hibbert had a double-double with his 16 points and 11 rebounds, but it was Julius Randle’s performance that had all of his teammates praising him after the game.
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“Julius is an animal,” Hibbert said of Randle’s performance (16 points, five rebounds and four assists). “He’s the future of this team. He’s the future face of the NBA. That boy can play. The things he does at his size, dribbling the ball up the court, dunking. The sky’s the limit, I’ve never seen anybody like him.”
Bryant noted Randle’s attention to the details of the game, like quickly moving his feet on defense and knowing when to make plays for others and when to attack the rim. Scott was very impressed with Randle’s ability to defend and move the ball in transition.
Bryant played almost 21 minutes in his second game of the preseason, finishing with 13 points and three assists. The Lakers will practice on Wednesday before heading back to Los Angeles and playing against the Toronto Raptors on Thursday. Check out all of our post-game videos below.
Kobe Bryant on Julius Randle: ‘Lamar Odom in Zach Randolph’s Body’
Roy Hibbert on Julius Randle: ‘He’s The Future Face of The NBA’
Byron Scott On Kobe Bryant’s Performance, Metta World Peace