If Thursday’s matchup was indeed just another game for Julius Randle, he did a great job reminding Knicks fans of what a day at the office is like for the three-time All-Star.
The face of the Knicks turnaround under Tom Thibodeau, facing his former team for the first time, lit up the scoring with 15 first quarter points, took 14 shots before anyone else on the floor took 10, and jawed at the New York bench after hitting a corner three when he was lighting up the game to start.
Then the Knicks made their adjustments and put OG Anunoby on Randle, and Randle went on to score just nine points the rest of the game. He was booed by his home fans when they felt the ball was stuck to his hands on offense, was eviscerated on social media for a viral clip that showed him not getting back on defense, and bolted for the locker room after the final buzzer, shunning his former teammates in the process.
Again, all part of the Randle experience that, for Knicks fans, did feel reminiscent of “just another game.”
Randle is undoubtedly a flawed player who, at times, caught too much flack from Knicks fans during his five seasons in Gotham. After all, he signed with the Knicks when seemingly nobody else wanted to, put together a remarkable Most Improved Player campaign to get the Knicks to the playoffs in 2021, and remade himself again two years later to become an All-Star in back-to-back seasons. But the lackadaisical possessions on defense and the tendency to bring ball movement to a halt in the halfcourt offense was always a point of complaint among the fanbase. Of course, the infamous thumbs down at MSG was a sticking point as well. Did it warrant stomping on his poster at The Garden after the Knicks were bounced by the Heat in the conference semifinals two seasons ago? No. Did it warrant rave reviews after the Knicks shipped him out in a package with Donte DiVincenzo for Karl-Anthony Towns? Absolutely.
Thursday night confirmed that, with both sides proving why it was a no-brainer move.
Randle’s lackluster play (and behavior after the game) after a red-hot start justified the Knicks’ blockbuster offseason trade as much as their new star’s performance did. While Randle stayed relatively motionless on the defensive end, Towns soared in for 20 rebounds. While Randle came out firing against his former team, looking to prove a point, Towns let the pace of the game dictate his strategy, posting just two field goal attempts in the opening frame before erupting for 30 on the night, and discussed his “patience” after the win was secured. The Knicks ball movement was a thing of beauty, especially in the second half, and Towns was in the middle of it all.
Off the court, Towns signed autographs for fans and raved about his experience in Minnesota, while Randle said all of seven words about facing the Knicks the day before the game, then scorned his former teammates after the game while Jalen Brunson could be seen looking for his former co-star.
The trade has undoubtedly raised the Knicks ceiling, especially on the offensive end. Thursday’s game further reinforced that conclusion, and Randle’s behavior before, during, and after the game cemented the fact that the Knicks were right to pull off the blockbuster of the offseason.