Let me start off by saying that I am not just posting this because of what I saw from Anthony Randolph last night against the Lakers. I didn't really know much about Randolph before the Warriors drafted him and I'm sure, like me, a lot of people reacted in the same fashion when the Warriors took him with the 14th overall pick in last years draft. Personally, I wondered why we would need another tall, skinny, left handed basketball player when we just got Brandan Wright a season before. So I began to research Randolph a little bit and I have to say I was impressed. I YouTubed his name and found some of his highlights from LSU and a video showcasing his handling and leaping ability. Then I kept hearing his name pop up in the summer league (all good things) and the buzz about this kid started to catch my ear a little bit. I started to get excited about the newest Warrior hype. He was described as a tall, athletic forward who can handle the ball very well and has the ability to finish (although last night he missed 3 layups in a row). He was similar to Brandan Wright in the sense that they both were tall and left handed but Randolph is a much different player.

In November, I put up a post which posed the question : Who would you rather keep : Wright or Randolph? and the majority chose Randolph. I think this is because Randolph really does have star qualities in him. It's not often you get a guy who can play point/center or point/forward. He is developing some kind of a mid range shot and if he perfects it while adding a post up game, he will truly have an all around ability. He rebounds and blocks well and on top of that, I can really see the drive and passion that this kid plays with. Oops, I forgot to mention : He's only 19!! Which means, with the right coaching, that he will only get better. Though there are times that he looks completely erratic out there, I at least like the determination and willingness to learn. I know he so desperately wants to play and he has shown his attitude but I like how he has progressed and stayed positive. He knows he has to keep working hard and improving and eventually he will get his turn.

Anyways, last nights performance by Anthony Randolph was a perfect example of why we should not trade this kid. He's going to get older, wiser and overall better! He frustrated one of the leagues hottest players, as of late, in Lamar Odom and he seemed like he was everywhere on the court. For the most part, he was doing all the right things and If we would have won, he would have definitely been the X-factor in the game. We all should know that there are going to be ups and downs with this kid, but if it were up to me, I would not give up on him because if we do, he's going to be a star somewhere else. Even though Warrior fans are all too familiar with situations like this, it would be an absolute shame to see another star that we had the rights to, end up getting traded. I don't want to see it happen again. Don't trade Anthony Randolph!