Lakers’ Julius Randle off crutches as 2014 draft class suffers injury bug

Lakers forward Julius Randle recently has walked without crutches after fracturing his right leg a little less than two months ago in a season-ending injury. (Micah Escamilla/Staff Photographer)

Lakers forward Julius Randle recently has walked without crutches after fracturing his right leg a little less than two months ago in a season-ending injury. (Micah Escamilla/Staff Photographer)

It appeared like a normal exercise as Lakers rookie forward Julius Randle performed a leg press during Wednesday’s practice. But in Randle’s case, it marked one of many progressions he has made since suffering a season-ending injury to his right leg in the Lakers’ season opener just under two months ago.

Since then, Randle has healed enough to get around without any crutches in the past week.

“Honestly I’m not supposed to be off crutches,” Randle said, with a chuckle. “The doctor said to go at your own pace. My pace was to get rid of them immediately.”

Randle still has a long way to go. He has started the physical therapy portion of his season-long rehab that currently entails walking on a weight-bearing treadmill. That hardly matches what the Lakers envisioned with they drafted him seventh overall out of the University of Kentucky. That hardly matches what Randle envisioned when he showed potential during exhibition play as a versatile forward that could play physical, hit a mid-range jumper and even assume ball-handling duties.

“You miss the competitive atmosphere and going to war with your teammates,” Randle said. “It’s tough. It’s a brotherhood out there and its tough to sit back and watch. But I’m learning a lot throughout all this.”

The lessons have gone beyond staying disciplined with dieting, studying the Lakers’ playbook or watching other stretch forwards, such as Charles Barkley, Antonio McDyess, Kevin Garnett, Tim Duncan and Dirk Nowitzki. Randle has learned that significant members of his draft class have also suffered serious injuries.

Milwaukee Bucks forward Jabari Parker, who was selected second overall, suffered a season-ending anterior cruciate ligament injury to his left knee. Other injuries have included third pick Joel Embiid (Philadelphia 76ers), fourth pick Aaron Gordon (Orlando Magic), sixth pick Marcus Smart (Boston Celtics), ninth pick Noah Vonleh (Charlotte Hornets), and 11th pick Doug McDermott (Chicago Bulls).

“It’s not something I thought about,” Randle said. “Unfortunately, this happened with our draft class a lot. But injuries are a part of the game. You lay your body out there and sacrifice your body and it happens sometimes.”

Because of that, Randle visited his alma mater on Saturday to watch the Wildcats’ win over North Carolina. There, Randle offered cookie-cutter advice, such as “stay in the moment” and that playing in the NBA “comes with a lot of responsibility.” Randle reported that University of Kentucky coach John Calipari stressed to him not to treat his season-long absence as “a vacation.” Randle also confirmed plenty on the Wildcats questioned him about Lakers’ Kobe Bryant, namely his recent profanity-laced tirade in practice.

“They were like, ‘Does Kobe really spaz out?'” Randle said, laughing. “I’m like, ‘Nah, he’s just competitive.’ It wasn’t serious or anything like that. He’s just a competitive guy and expects the best out of us.”

Bryant’s outburst during last Thursday’s practice struck a chord with Randle, who idolized the Lakers’ star growing up.

“It was funny,” Randle said. “I can’t say it was nothing I didn’t expect. There’s a reason why he is who he is.”

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Follow L.A. Daily News Lakers beat writer Mark Medina on Twitter and on Facebook. E-mail him at mark.medina@langnews.com