Already married, Julius Randle did not need, unlike Eddie Murphy in his time, to discover New York to find love. And between the strong winger and the Big Apple, the idyll continues even its path. At 26, the galloping interior will discover the all-star game on Sunday night for the first time in his career, for his seventh season in the League.
Le boss des Knicks
Drafted by the Lakers in 2014 (7th choice), Julius Randle was forced to go into exile far from California to take off. Promising but often messy with the Angelenos for four seasons, the native of Dallas then took more consistency in New Orleans for a year before landing in New York, with a status difficult to define… Offensive leader? Joker out of the bench? Future currency? On the pitch, number 30 put everyone in agreement. He’s the boss of the Knicks.
For ten years, the Knicks All Stars can be counted on the fingers of one hand: Amar’e Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony (6x), Tyson Chandler, Kristaps Porzingis and therefore Julius Randle. Symbol of a New York formation that nobody expected at this level at the time of the All-Star break (4th in the Eastern Conference, 18v – 17d), Julius Randle has become the driving force behind his franchise for his second campaign at Madison Square Garden.
A paver who also became a creator
With 23.4 points (48.3 FG% / 41.9 3P%), 10.9 rebounds and especially 5.5 assists per game, the former Kentucky Wildcat has become a basketball factory under the orders of Tom Thibodeau, far from the image of a player. one-dimensional that stuck to him since his debut on the NBA floors. Still equally at ease on the rebound, Randle has developed extremely useful passer skills, using his attacking qualities to create spaces for his partners.
Improving his long-distance shooting also added a string to the strong winger’s bow, allowing him to build a devilishly complete offensive arsenal. Tonic and explosive, the New York left-hander is the quintessential modern interior. If observers believed for a time that its size would hinder him in his career (2.03m), the former Laker, on the contrary, was able to transform it into an asset. Randle is indeed between two positions, that of winger and strong winger, but in a League that always requires more versatility from its players, this versatility on the ground suits him perfectly. A few days away from honoring his first All-Star cape in Atlanta, Julius Randle has managed to put the Knicks back on the NBA map and place them in the race for the Playoffs. And that was not a given.
–