No NBA player has had a slower start than power forward Julius Randle of the New York Knicks. His inability to shoot the ball into the basket was setting records for inefficiency.
Randle’s difficulties were exacerbated by offseason ankle surgery, as he spent the most of the NBA offseason recovering and struggling to find his rhythm and form. Because of this, the early production was below the caliber at which audiences have grown accustomed to watching Randle perform.
Randle didn’t shoot over 50 percent for the first time until the ninth game of the season. Despite some poor shooting outings, he was nonetheless quite productive, making up for it with strong rebounding and assist totals.
Through October, Randle had an ugly shooting split of .295/.320/.640. However, as the season has wore on, his shooting numbers have been on the rise. In his last seven games, Randle has been playing like an All-Star and All-NBA caliber player he has shown in the past.
Over his last seven games, Randle is averaging 28.1 points, 9.1 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game as he is stuffing the stat sheet. He has been very efficient, making 57.5 percent of his shots overall, 41.4 percent from 3-point range and 81.3 from the charity stripe.
Over those seven games, the Knicks have gone 4-3. They go as Randle does, which is partly why people believe they need to make a move for another star player to push Randle into the No. 2 role.
In December, Randle has been on fire. He is averaging 28.8 points with 7.3 rebounds and 5.5 assists. He has been on fire shooting the ball, with a .614/.538/.846 shooting split against the Raptors twice and road games with the Milwaukee Bucks and Boston Celtics.
When Randle is on, as he has been the last few weeks, the Knicks are a very difficult team to slow down. Jalen Brunson has shown he can be a successful closer and RJ Barrett is coming into his own as the No. 3 option
Randle showed heart and energy during Monday night’s game against the Toronto Raptors, which is the kind of thing his teammates can thrive off of. The Knicks are already a club that rivals dislike having on their schedule, but if Randle can sustain that upbeat vibe more often, they’ll be even more formidable.
With four of their five games being played on the West Coast, New York will need more of that as they begin a five-game road trip. They then play two games at home against the Milwaukee Bucks before starting a second road trip.
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