Julius Randle arrived in New York in the 2019 Offseason on a 3-Year/$63M contract. The signing was viewed by many as a letdown due to the fact that Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant chose to sign with the Knicks’ crosstown rivals, the Brooklyn Nets. He chose to come to a team coming off a 17-win season with a positive attitude and aspirations to change the narrative around the New York Knicks.
After 5 seasons in New York, Julius has accomplished just that.
His first season in New York was not easy. David Fizdale was fired early in the season, there was an entirely new rotation, and the Knicks weren’t even invited to the NBA Bubble. Little did we know, the long offseason gave Randle an opportunity to improve his games in more ways than one.
Still facing scrutiny from his first season, Randle returned in 2020-21 with even lower expectations than the previous year. But from then on, he’s done nothing but raise expectations. He’s made 3 All-Star teams in 4 years. He’s been an All-NBA player twice. Beyond personal accomplishments, he’s brought the Knicks to the postseason 3 of the last 4 years, a situation that Knicks fans could only dream of when he was first signed.
Furthermore, the nucleus he’s built has made the Knicks an attractive place to play for absolutely anyone. Do you think that all of Jalen Brunson, Donte DiVincenzo, and Isaiah Hartenstein would sign in New York if it was the same situation as 2019? Can’t say that they all would.
The Knicks aren’t where they are right now if Julius Randle doesn’t take a blind leap of faith by joining the Knicks in 2019.