Julius Randle IS a 'cornerstone' player

[Polk377]

What's crazy about the season Julius is having is by the numbers it is nearly identical to the last 2 seasons. The only major difference has been his improved 3 point and long 2 point shooting. It goes to show the impact of having a great coach who knows how to put players in better positions really changes things.

I mean his assist rate is up almost 10% over his career average on identical usage to his last two season & a lower turnover rate...that's a pretty major difference.

Those are great too. I think those are a product of having better players around him and having better overall space to work the defense and pick his spots.

[spree2kawhi]

Imagine a Devin Booker type of player wanted out. Just imagine, I know they're doing well. We've certainly got the necessary assets to get him. Now imagine them asking for RJ and picks.

Does Booker agree to come here to form a championship duo with Randle? No, and that's all you need to know.

[camby23]

Read on Twitter

[KnixtapeH20]

I think Randle can be a LeBron lite

Jesus Christ.

Whats so crazy about the way hes playing right now? IF he keeps this level of play up he's one of the best players in the NBA. He does it all. Give him better spacing, better shooters and he will thrive even more.

Is that so outlandish?

[Fat Kat]

Read on Twitter

[JBreezeNY]

Looooooooooooooooooooooool

[NoLayupRule]

no one is more shocked than me but with the right coach and team he seems to be everything anyone ever hoped he might be

his willingness to play D and pass is amazing
I hope its not contract year fools gold but I suspect not
hes a legit all star with this type of play
I think he will understand that and continue


Just imagine if we had a real shooter or two out there to balance the floor better?

[cgmw]

Funny you mention Kawhi. Somehow I think that’s Leon’s grand plan — keep Randle, then trade for a supplemental star like Beal or maybe KAT, then make a play for Kawhi in FA.

[stuporman]

I put this in the post game thread but maybe it has some more relevance here:

What does Randle have to accomplish with the Knicks to be the best #30 they ever had?

...and the rebuts:

He can start by dragging a bunch of bums to a Game 7 against Bird, Mchale, DJ and Parish.

what if he does that against KD, harden, and kyrie

[jstudabaka]

He's playing like that right now, but I need more of a sample size and to see whether he hits a wall with all the minutes Thibs has him playing. Randle's numbers are inflated by the fact that he's up there among the league leaders in minutes per game. Also, need to see if the 3pt shooting is for real.

Where we are now vs where we were at the start of the season is that at the start, most would have been glad to send Randle away on a Marcus Morris-type trade, best case scenario, or even just outright dump him. The majority on this board probably didn't want the option for next year picked up. Now I don't think anyone would suggest not picking up his option next year, and any trade would have to net either multiple picks, a lottery pick, or a legit prospect to make it worthwhile.

[Fat Kat]

[Da_Mane_Man]

No one saw this coming. Melo would even admit that. I liked Julius when we got him....hated him last year. Expected more of the same this year. Low IQ spin cycle was his forte all year.

This season is definitely an eye opener. Could he be making this leap or is it feasting on a bad team? Looks to be making the leap and I am hopeful it is for real because...we usually trade players who become better elsewhere. This is a pleasant surprise. Keep it up and we pick up the option. Good place to be for a change.

This is what's so crazy. how can a player gain so much IQ in the course of a few months? it's obviously a combination of factors, not just one, but two that stick out to me are obviously coaching, but also slightly better teammates perhaps. I think most of the credit has to go to Thibs and to Randle himself for making the change, but being able to trust his teammates a little more might be helping. Knowing that IQ can hit an outside shot, or make something happen for himself definitely lightens the load.

We'll see if he can keep this up for the whole season. I could honestly see this team hitting the tank just as much as keeping this .500 play going the rest of the year.

[stuporman]

I heard Randle has a $1mil bonus if he makes an all star game....this true?

[Knicksfan1992]

I think Julius could be a number 2 on a top 3 seed in the conference in the right situation. If you've got a strong number 3 and 4 offensively with good defensive role players... sure why not? I mean the guy is currently averaging 23 a game on really good efficiency. He's not hogging the ball and his current play would absolutely translate to being a good number 2. After that it's pretty much luck when it comes to actually winning a title...

I mean arguing whether he's a "cornerstone" or not is pretty much arguing semantics.... The Knicks should absolutely consider him part of their core going forward. Is that a cornerstone? Who honestly gives a chit? lol. He's a great player who is currently giving us surplus value on his deal. And the great part is we have a few guys, in house, who can all get better as Julius mans the ship for the time being.

Quick, RJ, Mitch, and Toppin all still have some development time left. Knicks are in a great situation moving forward. If even one of those guys pops to all-star level, we go from fun story to conference contender pretty quickly.

[seren]

He looks real. If he can keep this up, we do need to go for that second star before he is due for extension. At this rate, he is a max player.

[HerSports85]

Lol IQ looking like a proud girlfriend

[HarthorneWingo]

Lol IQ looking like a proud girlfriend

That's cold

[KnixinSix]

I think Randle can be a LeBron lite

Jesus Christ.

Whats so crazy about the way hes playing right now? IF he keeps this level of play up he's one of the best players in the NBA. He does it all. Give him better spacing, better shooters and he will thrive even more.

Is that so outlandish?

No not outlandish at all, Rose and Quickly maturing before our eyes should help him even more.

Less ball handling, better spacing and more open looks.

He isn't top 10 but his current play places him right there after that. Luka, Jokic, AD, Bron, Harden, KD, Kawhi, Embiid, Curry, Lillard and a couple others. Miami and Boston have 2 stars outside the top 10 and did very well last year. Toronto had Kawhi and a couple nice peices and did pretty amazing. If the Knicks keep it up, a superstar I believe would definitely come and play for this team.

[DaGawd]

Funny you mention Kawhi. Somehow I think that’s Leon’s grand plan — keep Randle, then trade for a supplemental star like Beal or maybe KAT, then make a play for Kawhi in FA.

Cap space situation gets a lil dicey after a Beal trade no?

[NoDopeOnSundays]

We're not getting Kawhi, he left a championship team in Toronto to go to LA, mainly because he wanted to live in San Diego.

Please, stop with the Kawhi hopes.