New York Knicks big man Julius Randle is being honest about his future with the team. Randle spent most of the season out of the lineup with an upper-body injury. The forward is now becoming eligible for a contract extension, and would like to remain where he is.
“I’ve always said from the very beginning I would love to be here in New York and I would love to continue to add on to what the guys did in the playoffs,” Randle said, per Newsday. “I feel like that was my personal — biggest personal goal or I’d say team goal in a sense when I got here. I wanted to help build and compete and to get to the point where we’re at now, where it’s an actual possibility.”
The Knicks were ravaged by injuries in their playoff run this season, and bowed to Indiana Pacers in 7 games in the Eastern Conference semi-finals. A healthy Randle could have brought an entirely different result to the team.
Randle's Knick history
Randle appeared in only 46 games this season for the Knicks. He averaged 24 points a game though, making his mark on the floor. He also grabbed 9 rebounds a game. Randle has been an important building block in making the Knicks a championship contender once again. He averaged 35 minutes a game the last three seasons for New York, and the team needs him on the floor.
Randle says this offseason his goal is to get healthy. The forward hurt his shoulder this past year, which kept him off the court while his team made a deep run in the Eastern Conference Playoffs. The Knicks had to rely on Jalen Brunson for offense, and the club wasn't able to get enough help outside of their guard.
“That’s what my focus is, doing whatever I can to make sure I get healthy and get back and make sure I’m ready whenever we start playing again, contribute to winning,” Randle added.
The Knicks now have a very important decision to make. Randle is eligible for a contract extension that could give him as much as $182 million over the next four years, per the New York Post. If the Knicks decide not to extend him, it may cause some friction between Randle and the team. That's the last thing the team wants, as the club is trying to push even farther in the postseason. New York fans are starved for a NBA championship, and the club is closer to getting one now than they have been in 30 years. The last Knicks NBA championship came all the way back in 1973.
This offseason is absolutely pivotal to the future of the Knicks organization. Along with the Randle talks, the team also has the possibility to extend head coach Tom Thibodeau and their star point guard Brunson. If the Knicks win a title soon, it may very well be because of how they handled the issues facing them this summer.
Follow Us
Subscribe