New York Knicks: Julius Randle’s struggles are now a concerning trend
The New York Knicks should be concerned by Julius Randle’s struggles.
During the regular season, Julius Randle performed like an MVP candidate en route to winning the NBA’s Most Improved Player of the Year award while leading the New York Knicks to the playoffs for the first time in nearly a decade.
Entering the playoffs as the 4th seed in the Eastern Conference it appeared as if New York had found its new star and likely foundational building block. However, through the first three games in their first-round series against the Atlanta Hawks, Randle’s struggles are not something that can be glossed over anymore.
After the first game, it was chalked up as jitters. After Game 2, it appears that perhaps Randle had found something with an improved second-half performance. However, after another disappointing effort in Game 3, Randle’s struggles can’t be overlooked anymore.
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Could Julius Randle’s struggles impact the future of the New York Knicks?
Through the first three games of this series, Randle 15 points 12 rebounds on 24 percent shooting from the field, and 30 percent from 3-point range. His counting stats may seem fine on the surface, but his efficiency has been something that has hurt the Knicks’ overall offense.
He hasn’t been the offensive leader that the Knicks have needed in this series and I’m not sure where this team would be without Derrick Rose. However, that’s not exactly a blueprint for success for New York.
Despite how great Rose has been in this series, they’re not going to beat the Hawks in a seven-game series with Rose leading the way. That’s not the formula for success for any team in 2021. If the Knicks are going to have any chance at winning this series, they’re going to need a huge bounce-back performance for Randle in Games 4-6.
And if it doesn’t come, you’d have to wonder if that could potentially impact his future with the team. For as great of a regular season as he had, all of that goodwill could be erased with a continued lackluster performance in the postseason.
Would that impact the possibility of the Knicks offering a big extension to him during the offseason? Should it?
Randle’s struggles through three games are not something that can be chalked up as nerves anymore. Whatever the root is, there is something tangible to his issues. And it should lead the Knicks to have some concerns about him move forward (if he can’t find his footing over the next couple of games).
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The Knicks have had a great season, but should they go out in five games with Randle struggling the way he has, you can’t help but wonder if this would bring a black cloud over this team heading into the offseason.