Over the last few weeks, New York Knicks power forward Julius Randle has been one of the most dominant players in the NBA. He has found his groove after a slow start to the 2023-24 season, which resulted in him setting records for his struggles shooting the ball.
However, even the best players in the NBA have off nights from time to time. No one is perfect and in the Knicks’ most recent game against the short-handed Memphis Grizzlies, Randle had that off night.
The Grizzlies’ top-eight players in their rotation were all sidelined for the game for various injuries. Memphis was using a lineup of deep bench players and G Leaguers, yet they gave the Knicks everything they could handle on Saturday night.
NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Julius Randle, Memphis Grizzlies, New York Knicks Updates
While New York eventually came away with a 109-94 victory, it was a much tougher game than many anticipated it would be. A big reason for the Knicks’ underwhelming performance was Randle.
Without point guard Jalen Brunson in the lineup, New York was relying on Randle to be their leader on the court and to set the tone for the rest of his teammates. In that regard, he failed miserably and his teammates followed suit.
Without their starting point guard, the Knicks played a messy game offensively. On the season they are averaging 13.7 turnovers per game, but turned it over 22 times against the Grizzlies. Randle led the way with six turnovers and torpedoed several more offensive possessions with poor decision-making.
His lackadaisical effort on the defensive end of the court only compounded the issues. There were too many clips of Randle looking lost on that side of the ball or just seeming disinterested, something that has not been the case often during the last few weeks of the season.
After the game, Randle did not hold back when speaking about his performance. He was honest about assessing his game, as he took accountability for the way he played, which was an encouraging thing to hear.
NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Julius Randle, Memphis Grizzlies, New York Knicks Updates
“I was awful. I was terrible. I’m not going to lie, I was terrible,” Randle said when speaking to reporters after the game, from Lets Talk Knicks on X, formerly Twitter, via Stefan Bondy of The New York Post.
Outside of the turnovers, Randle’s box score looks solid. He scored a game-high 24 points on 9-of-21 shooting, as his 3-point stroke never got going, making only one of six attempts. Randle added 11 rebounds, five assists and one block on the evening.
Despite what the stats say, Randle knows that he had a bad game. The Knicks trailed for a majority of the first half despite Luke Kennard, who averages 9.1 points per game, being the highest-scoring active player for Memphis that evening.
Hopefully, he can put that one behind him and get back on track in the next one. The Knicks will host the Orlando Magic in a Monday matinee in what has become an annual game on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
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