New York Knicks All-Star forward Julius Randle reportedly will undergo surgery on his injured right shoulder and miss the remainder of the 2023-24 season.
Julius Randle will undergo season-ending right shoulder surgery, per @wojespn pic.twitter.com/gNKzJmLMQa
— Ahn Fire Digital (@AhnFireDigital) April 4, 2024
Randle was injured back on Jan. 27 against the Miami Heat and has not played for the Knicks since. The three-time All-Star attempted to get back on the floor without having surgery, but it appears that is the best path forward for him to fully recover.
The Knicks star reportedly is “devastated” that he won’t be able to return to the court this season.
Julius Randle is said to be devastated about not being able return, particularly because he knows how well they were playing after OG Anunoby trade, per sources familiar with the matter. One medical fear was Randle could permanently damage shoulder if he returned, per sources.
— Ian Begley (@IanBegley) April 4, 2024
The loss of Randle is a massive blow for the Knicks, who are currently the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference.
New York has played much of the last few months without Randle and forward O.G. Anunoby, who is dealing with an elbow injury.
However, the Knicks thrived when Randle, Anunoby and Jalen Brunson were all healthy in January. In 13 games with the trio, the Knicks went 12-1 and posted the best net rating in the NBA during that stretch.
In the 13 games the Knicks played in January with Randle, OG and Brunson, New York went 12-1.
And posted the best Defensive Rating and Net Rating in the NBA.
— Tommy Beer (@TommyBeer) April 4, 2024
Since Randle went down, New York is just 15-14, and the team has dropped three straight games to fall behind the Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference standings.
Before getting hurt, Randle was in the midst of yet another All-NBA caliber season (he’s earned the honor in two of the previous three seasons), averaging 24.0 points, 9.2 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game while shooting 47.2 percent from the field and 31.1 percent from beyond the arc.
The Knicks have been able to hang around in the playoff picture since Randle was injured, partially due to Josh Hart, Precious Achiuwa and Donte DiVincenzo stepping up in the rotation to take on bigger loads scoring the ball.
New York will also need trade deadline acquisitions like Alec Burks and Bojan Bogdanovic to step up the rest of the season – and into the playoffs – if it wants to reach the second round of the playoffs for the second straight season.
Bogdanovic has outplayed Burks since coming to the Knicks, but he’s still averaging just 10.4 points per game on 41.6 percent shooting from the field for New York.
According to the Knicks, Randle will be re-evaluated in five months.
Julius Randle will have surgery on his right shoulder. He will be re-evaluated in 5 months.
— NY_KnicksPR (@NY_KnicksPR) April 4, 2024
The team is certainly hoping that the star forward will be able to return to his usual form in the 2024-25 season.
