NEW YORK — It’s hard to remember a player with such extreme love and hatred of his job like Julius Randle.
He loves it enough to play through injuries, to play through frustration, to lead the league in minutes last season after turning his 6-8 enormous body into a conditioned machine. As Randle said Sunday, following just his second missed game due to injury over three seasons with the Knicks, “I hate taking time off.”
It’s a refreshing stance in today’s NBA world, where too many stars treat the regular season like a Lazy Sunday. And yet, it’s hard to understand why Randle wants so badly to be on the basketball court, especially this season at Madison Square Garden, where he often looks miserable.
The latest example was Monday night’s victory over the Bulls, which was soured by Randle’s reactions before and after the final buzzer, most notably his beeline to the locker room while his teammates celebrated. It’s impossible to know what’s occurring in Randle’s mind during these moments, but the optics suggest some self-centered beef or insecurity. Coach Tom Thibodeau avoids the topic when quizzed by the media, often steering the conversation to Randle’s rebounding or some team-wide issue.
It could be, of course, the boos from the home crowd or the adulation and chants for Randle’s replacement, Obi Toppin. Randle’s thumbs-down gesture in January demonstrated he’s acutely aware of the MSG crowd.
There’s more evidence suggesting he’s affected by the environment. The difference isn’t earth-shattering, but Randle is shooting worse at home than on the road (39.7% to 42.4%), shooting worse from beyond the arc (28.9% to 32.4%), shooting worse from the foul line (74.5% to 77%), scoring less (19.1 points to 20.1 points) and committing more turnovers (3.5 to 3.3). The Knicks also own a better record on the road.
It could also be the frustration of a diminishing role, with RJ Barrett’s ascension taking away some of Randle’s shine and opportunities. Randle views himself as a star worthy of the ball, exhibiting the confidence that is great for a star with the requisite skills but counterproductive if it’s overinflated.
Skeptics around the league don’t believe Randle can succeed as a second, third or fourth option, which would have to be his status on a title contender. Even today, without another All-Star on the roster, Randle’s grip on the featured role is slipping away because of Barrett, who is commanding the ball and notice of his teammates while building toward a max extension in the offseason.
“Right now, he’s the ... guy,” center Mitchell Robinson said of the 21-year-old Barrett. “You got to feed him. We’re winning, he’s eating, everybody is eating.”
This season fell on its face when Barrett missed four games with an ankle sprain just before the All-Star break, when the Knicks suffered epic late-game collapses against the Blazers, Thunder and Nets. Thibodeau’s job felt in jeopardy, but then Barrett returned after the break, the young players (specifically Immanuel Quickley and Toppin) surged, and the Knicks are enjoying their best stretch of the season.
“We just kind of found our rhythm. Found it late but found it nonetheless,” Barrett said.
Reminded that another factor was him returning from injury, Barrett said, “Yeah, that happened as well.”
It’s perpetuating one of the divisive narratives that Thibodeau lamented last week, but it’s also silly to ignore the months of mood swings and unpredictability from Randle. It’s not sustainable. Something has to give.
I’ve been against trading Randle with his value at such a low point, and his contract status — he’s just starting a four-year max extension next season — makes him more of a negative asset today than his future potential. In other words, the Knicks’ best option is to work this out internally. Use the exit interviews for harsh realities, not the friendly uncle discussion or the backslapping ‘rah, rah, rah’ attitude associated with team executive World Wide Wes.
The roster construction is flawed and the Knicks removed two of Randle’s good friends — Reggie Bullock and Elfrid Payton — from last season’s squad. But these are poor excuses for Randle’s season and his ugly moments. Even if he can never again shoot 3-pointers as efficiently as his magical 2020-21 season, there’s a place for Randle with an attitude adjustment and greater self-awareness.
He’s been enabled along the way this season whether it’s James Dolan eating a fine or Thibodeau pretending like the destructive behavior doesn’t exist. If you let things go too far unchecked, you get Stephon Marbury. Somebody with the Knicks needs to give Randle a reality check.
