One of the biggest storylines from the start of the 2023-24 NBA season has been the performance of New York Knicks power forward, Julius Randle. Coming off his second All-Star and All-NBA Second Team nomination in the last three seasons, Randle got off to a historically poor start this season.
He was making NBA history, but not the kind that any player wants to be attached to. Randle’s start to the season shooting-wise was among the worst a player has ever endured. He shot 27.6 percent from the field in the first five games of the season and had the worst shooting percentage in NBA history in the first six games of a season.
Randle believed a big reason for his struggles was the lack of spacing in the lineup. He was partly right in that assessment, as the Knicks, as a whole, were abysmal shooting the ball early in the season. But, this was an offense that found a lot of its success last season despite poor shooting numbers as they mauled opponents on the glass.
NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Julius Randle & New York Knicks Updates
It was more of the same this season, as the Knicks are among the best offensive rebounding teams in the NBA. The only difference was, that Randle wasn’t making the most of the extra opportunities as he did last season.
It was also revealed that the Knicks were attempting to get Randle to rest early in the season as he recovered from offseason ankle surgery. That could have been the main reason he struggled as much as he did in the early going as he was working to get his legs back under him.
That looks to be occurring as Randle is finding his groove and getting into a rhythm. As shared by Knicks Muse on X, formerly known as Twitter, in his last three games, Randle is averaging 24.3 points per game and making 45 percent from the field, which is nearly double what he was doing at the start of the season.
On top of the improved shooting and scoring numbers, he is averaging 10.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.3 steals per game. That is more in line with the production Randle was providing during his All-Star and All-NBA seasons.
NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Julius Randle & New York Knicks Updates
With Randle finding his form, the Knicks are going to be a very dangerous team. Jalen Brunson has continued playing at a very high level and RJ Barrett is ascending to the next level as well. On top of that, they have arguably the best bench unit in the NBA.
If this level of production keeps up, nothing is keeping the Knicks from being contenders not only in the Eastern Conference but in the NBA. They have proven capable of hanging and competing with the upper echelon teams in the league already, playing tough against the Boston Celtics and Milwaukee Bucks.
Had this version of Randle shown up in either game, the Knicks could have had at least one more victory on their ledger this season. Hopefully, he is recovered more from his ankle procedure and this version is here to stay.
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