After a stirring run last season, many expected the New York Knicks to climb a notch higher this season. The additions of Kemba Walker and Evan Fournier seemed promising, the rise of Immanuel Quickley and Obi Toppin were expected, and Julius Randle and RJ Barrett were projected to be an All-Star pair.

Fast forward to today, the Knicks are, well, the Knicks again. Entering Thursday's game against the Boston Celtics, the team has a woeful 18-20 record for 11th place in the Eastern Conference. For what it's worth, the Knicks are 6-4 in their last 10 games despite their plethora of sidelined players due to injuries and COVID-19 protocols.

After a breakout campaign that saw him win as Most Improved Player, Randle has regressed this season. Many blame his inconsistent play for the struggles of the Knicks. He has already admitted that he's aware that playing in the Big Apple is more difficult because of the highly critical fans and reporters. But when asked about the criticisms against him this season, Randle was not so diplomatic (via New York Post).

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“Really don’t give a f*** what anybody has to say, to be honest. I’m out there playing. Nobody knows the game out there better than I do, compared to what everybody has to say. So I really don’t give a f***. I just go out there and play.”

It seems the frustrations have gotten the better of Randle, who recently returned from COVID-19 protocols. While he knows his heavy responsibility as the Knicks' star, the harsh reality is that he simply needs to be better.