One NBA executive believes that in order for the New York Knicks to have a puncher’s chance at reaching the NBA Finals, they need to trade forward Julius Randle for another star player who is a superior fit.
“Yeah, they’re almost in a situation where they have to do something,” the exec told Heavy Sports. “They can’t afford to wait. They can stay a pretty good team. But if they want to have a chance at the Finals, they have to find a taker for (Randle), find a way to turn him into a star who fits better.”
Randle is set to miss the remainder of the season for the Knicks with a shoulder injury and is reportedly “devastated” that he won’t be able to take the court with his teammates for the foreseeable future.
The 29-year-old appeared in 46 games for the storied franchise during the 2023-24 regular season and averaged 24.0 points, 9.2 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game while shooting 47.2 percent from the floor and 31.1 percent from 3-point range.
In his last game of the season, he accumulated 19 points, nine rebounds and three assists on 6-of-14 shooting from the field and 3-of-4 from deep in New York’s 16-point victory over the Miami Heat back on Jan. 27.
The Knicks have done an admirable job of adjusting to life without Randle on the court over the past few months. New York is ahead of the Cleveland Cavaliers by one game in the Eastern Conference standings for the No. 3 seed and riding a three-game winning streak.
The team is fresh off one of its more impressive victories of the campaign against the Boston Celtics on Thursday. The Knicks handed the Celtics just their fourth loss at home all season thanks to a scoring eruption from Jalen Brunson, who dropped 39 points on 23 shots from the floor to go along with four assists.
Brunson was one of six players for the Knicks who managed to score 10 points or more against a Celtics defense that is one of the very best in the NBA.
Before the playoffs begin for the Knicks, they have two games left to play on their regular-season schedule. First, New York will take on the Brooklyn Nets on Friday night. Then, in the last game of the Knicks’ 82-game slate, the team will play the Chicago Bulls on April 14.
