Julius Randle, a power forward for the New York Knicks, gave an update on his shoulder injury and talked about his future with the franchise.
Julius Randle ‘healing up great’ and ‘excited’ about Knicks’ potential
New York Knicks power forward Julius Randle provided an update on his shoulder injury and discussed his future with the team in an appearance on NBA Unplugged during Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals in which the Celtics smoothly swept the hapless Pacers.
Randle, who missed the playoffs due to shoulder surgery, told host Kevin Hart everything went well with surgery and thathe feels good about it.
“I spent two and a half months rehabbing before, so when I came out of shoulder surgery, I was recovering pretty fast,” Randle said. “All my muscles around my shoulder are strong, so I’ve been healing up great. I’ve been taking my time, Not in a rush. But I like where I’m at, for sure.”
Before buying forced to undergo surgery, Randle missed two months of the regular season while rehabbing from a dislocated shoulder suffered on a mid-air collision with Heat rookie Jaime Jaquez that ended with JR hitting the floor hard.
Randle attempted to return to the court during the home-stretch of the season but ultimately docs recommended him to go for the surgery to avoid future setbacks. The forward finished the season with 46 games averaging 24 PPG, 9.2 RPG, and 5 APG shooting 47.2 percent from the floor and 31.1 percent from beyond the arc.
Although he suffered the shoulder injury before the All-Star voting closed, Randle secured a place in the All-Star Game for the third time in his career—and in the last four years, all of them as a member of the Knicks.
Julius Randle, “excited” about the Knicks’ potential
On top of those comments, Randle also sounded excited about the future within the organization, although it’s not quite clear if New York’s FO will make JR available in a trade package if the opportunity to trade for a superstar emerges this summer.
“I’m excited, man,” Randle said. “It’s my fifth season being a Knick, and you know I was here when we were winning 15 games. We were coming, scratching, clawing from the bottom. To see where we’re at now, and to understand the potential of our team, the opportunity… I’m excited.
“It just motivates me to head into the offseason. I’m ready to get to work.”
Most recently, in a story published on May 24, Fred Katz of The Athletic reported that while the Knicks are “not trying to trade Randle,” the franchise’s brass “recognize that their quest for a star could require having to do so.” It’s also worth noting that Randle is eligible to sign an extension on Aug. 3 worth a maximum of $181.5 million over four years.
“The Knicks are not trying to trade Randle, but they recognize that their quest for a star could require having to do so,” Katz wrote. “If a suitable target does not pop up this summer, then they could turn their eyes to the 2025 trade deadline, hoping to land one then.”
A few days before Katz’s report dropped, insider Shams Charania also touched on Randle’s situation with the Knicks, stating the obvious and saying that he’s a prime candidate to be moved in a high-level trade.
“Teams are monitoring the situation,” Charania said on May 20 with regards to the Knicks extending (or not) Randle, potentially making him available for whoever wants him.