Julius Randle has had an up-and-down tenure with the Lakers. The young big man has had flashes of brilliance offensively where he bullied defenders, flung the ball around with his passing, and showed why he was taken No. 7 overall in the 2014 NBA Draft. However, with those flashes also came down moments.

Randle's defensive effort has been questioned in the past. He's had troubles maintaining a consistent role with the Lakers and his 49 starts this season were the least of his short NBA career. All of this leads up to what will be a very interesting summer for Randle and the Lakers when he's going to be a restricted free agent.

The Lakers can choose to just let Randle go sign a qualifying offer somewhere and then decide if they want to match the offer and keep him around, but that can't happen until free agency opens July 1. Before then the Lakers can try to reach an agreement with Randle to re-sign him. According to GM Rob Pelinka, the Lakers and Randle have been in contact with each other and have shown a mutual interest in reaching a deal. Randle's agent, however, disputes that. Via The Los Angeles Times.

Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka told The Times on Friday that the Lakers' front office is constantly in touch with Julius Randle's representatives, and there has been "a mutual exchange of interest and hoping that we can work something out for both sides."

Randle's camp is unsure of how mutual the interest has been.

"We still have no indication of where Julius stands among the Lakers' priorities, or if he is a priority at all," Randle's agent Aaron Mintz said Saturday in response to Pelinka's comments. "We are looking forward to the marketplace in July, when we will get a clear picture of Julius' future."  

It's interesting to see Randle's agent not only disagree with Pelinka's statement but publicly tell everyone that he's looking forward to July. It sounds like Randle's side has no interest in reaching a deal before the July 1 deadline and he wants to explore what he can get in the free-agent market. 

It's smart for Randle's representation to not trust the Lakers front office right now. While Pelinka and the Los Angeles front office might say they want to re-sign Randle, the real goal of the Lakers has always been to get a star. They've said so multiple times in the past and they recently said that nobody on the roster is untouchable. If re-signing Randle has even the slightest chance of messing up the Lakers plans,then they'll bide their time on re-signing him. 

However, Randle's camp should be wary of the restricted free agent market. The spending spree of previous free agencies has left teams strapped for cap space. As a result, many teams are hesitant to shell out money for players that they know will be available for cheaper later in the process. Last year, players like Nerlens Noel, Nikola Mirotic, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope all entered free agency with plans for a big payday. Instead, they had to take short-term deals to prove they were worth more money in the future.

Randle could be in a similar situation this summer if he waits for the July 1 date. He's talented, but unless teams out there see him as a sure thing, they might not be willing to commit long-term money to him. If that's the case and the Lakers don't give him the kind of contract he wants, then Randle could find himself settling for a much smaller deal than he wanted.