After the Cavaliers, limited to 81 points, it is the turn of the Hawks to come up against the defense of the Knicks, and the sanction is even more severe. This night, New York chained a second victory in a row, and they won 113-89! It’s the best victory of the season at home, and Julius Randle was royal! The former Most Improved Player signs his best game of the season with 34 points, 17 rebounds and 5 assists, and he took advantage of the absences of De’Andre Hunter and John Collins.
“It’s a monstrous match, and I loved the way he played” loose Tom Thibodeau. “When he plays like that, we are difficult to beat”.
For fans of stats, you should know that Randle is the first player in Knicks history to finish a game with at least 30 points, 15 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 3-point shots. It is also the 27th time, under the colors of New York, that he has finished a game with at least 30 points, 15 rebounds and 5 assists, and that’s better than Pat Ewing!
Author of 19 points in the only 3rd quarter, Randle explains what makes the difference. “I played on instinct, taking open shots and creating for others if I couldn’t penetrate, and it turned out well” he answers on the floor after the victory of the Knicks.
And what does he think of this nine-player rotation and this very high defense, aggressive on long shots?
“It’s been two matches that we have limited teams to below 100 points, and that’s always a good recipe for success. As long as we defend well, the attack will follow, and we can pile up victories like these”.
The slaughter of Quentin Grimes in defense, and his efficiency in attack do the greatest good to the Knicks, and Randle seems to benefit from it.
| Julius Randle | Percentage | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Crew | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | party | Int | bp | CT | Points |
| 2014-15 | ALL | 1 | 14 | 33.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 2.0 |
| 2015-16 | ALL | 81 | 28 | 42.9 | 27.8 | 71.5 | 2.1 | 8.1 | 10.2 | 1.8 | 3.0 | 0.7 | 1.8 | 0.4 | 11.4 |
| 2016-17 | ALL | 74 | 29 | 48.8 | 27.0 | 72.3 | 2.0 | 6.6 | 8.6 | 3.6 | 3.4 | 0.7 | 2.3 | 0.5 | 13.2 |
| 2017-18 | ALL | 82 | 27 | 55.8 | 22.2 | 71.8 | 2.2 | 5.8 | 8.0 | 2.6 | 3.3 | 0.5 | 2.6 | 0.6 | 16.1 |
| 2018-19 | NOP | 73 | 31 | 52.4 | 34.4 | 73.1 | 2.2 | 6.5 | 8.7 | 3.1 | 3.4 | 0.7 | 2.9 | 0.6 | 21.4 |
| 2019-20 | NYK | 64 | 33 | 46.0 | 27.7 | 73.3 | 2.4 | 7.4 | 9.7 | 3.1 | 2.8 | 0.8 | 3.0 | 0.3 | 19.5 |
| 2020-21 | NYK | 71 | 38 | 45.6 | 41.1 | 81.1 | 1.2 | 9.0 | 10.2 | 6.0 | 3.2 | 0.9 | 3.4 | 0.3 | 24.1 |
| 2021-22 | NYK | 72 | 35 | 41.1 | 30.8 | 75.6 | 1.7 | 8.2 | 9.9 | 5.1 | 2.9 | 0.7 | 3.4 | 0.5 | 20.1 |
| 2022-23 | NYK | 24 | 33 | 46.1 | 32.5 | 77.9 | 2.1 | 6.3 | 8.5 | 3.5 | 3.2 | 0.7 | 2.8 | 0.2 | 21.1 |
| Total | 542 | 31 | 47.1 | 33.1 | 74.5 | 2.0 | 7.3 | 9.3 | 3.6 | 3.1 | 0.7 | 2.8 | 0.4 | 17.9 | |
