Julius Randle excited, not frustrated despite slow preseason start

Rookie power forward Julius Randle gave arguably his best performance of the preseason on Sunday, helping the Lakers rally back from a 22-point deficit against the Utah Jazz while scoring eight points with five rebounds in just over 20 minutes.

“I thought Julius came in and played great in the second half,” said Coach Byron Scott after the 98-81 victory. “His effort was great.”

Scott has challenged Randle through the exhibition season -- playing him less than 11 minutes in the team’s previous game against the Jazz -- while calling for a more consistent effort from the Kentucky product.

“His communication on the defensive end was much, much better,” Scott said. “Offensively he was really good. He made some mistakes but it wasn’t because of lack of effort, and that’s the way he has to play.

“He has a world of talent, it’s just a matter of him having that consistent effort every single night.”

Randle said he isn’t concerned about his uneven start with the Lakers.

“I’m not frustrated at all,” Randle said. “I work too hard. I know eventually I’ll have success and I’ll figure things out.

“Instead of being frustrated and down, when my name is called, [I’m] excited, ready to go, ready to bring that energy, bring good vibes.”

Randle said General Manager Mitch Kupchak recently checked on him, just to make sure he’s in the right frame of mind.

“I said, ‘I’m good, [my mind is] clear,’” Randle said. “Mentally being at a good place when my name is called is better than mentally being frustrated.”

Teammate Kobe Bryant chimed in after the game, giving a curt perspective on Randle and his opportunity with the Lakers.

“He can’t [mess] it up, seriously. You [mess] this up, you have to be an idiot,” Bryant said.

Though Bryant used colorful language, his sentiment wasn’t far from Randle’s own words.

“Having a coach like Byron, learning from greats like Kobe, [Carlos Boozer], [Steve] Nash, all those guys and on top of that playing for the Lakers organization,” Randle said. “I’m in the perfect situation. I can’t mess it up.”

Randle said that in addition to support from Kupchak and Bryant, he still receives counsel from his former coaches at Kentucky.

“I still talked to my coaches today, my college coaches [associate head coach] Kenny Payne, [Coach John Calipari] and all those guys, and they say keep fighting and there’s nothing that I can’t do if I bring my energy to the court,” Randle said.

Email Eric Pincus at eric.pincus@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @EricPincus