NBA Trade Rumors: Randle Behavior Hints At Wanting Out Of New York

Julius Randle has had a tough season and try as he might, it seems apparent that his future with the New York Knicks does not look promising.

This comes a season after his breakout year that earned him his first All-Star nod.

However, the sudden turnaround was noticed as early as last year’s NBA playoffs. Randle was hardly a factor and that has extended until the current season.

Making matter worse are his uncanny actions, things that have drawn several fines from the league.

In the eyes of Marc Bergman of the New York Post, Randle appears to be acting in such a way suggesting he may want out of New York once the current season ends. The report went on to suggest that Randle could be packaged with Mitchell Robinson to other teams.

“Randle has lost his strongest ally in assistant coach Kenny Payne, his former mentor at Kentucky who left this month to be the head coach at Louisville. Some NBA sources believe the Knicks will shop Randle for a package revolving around a center if they lose Mitchell Robinson,” Bergman wrote.

The actions of Randle have led scribes to compare him to James Harden. As most know, James Harden passive-aggressively then aggressively pushed for a trade from the Nets to the 76ers.

But as most know, Randle and Harden are entirely different people. “The Beard” has established himself through the years while the 27-year-old, at least appeared, to be on his way to stardom.

Moving Randle will not be easy, particularly with the money that comes along with him. He is owed about $82 million over the next three seasons plus incentives.

Although most believe that he could perform better in a new environment, the money needed to take him in plus the risk of investing in someone.

Although he had a great 2020-21 season, the glaring dip in his numbers will be telling.

This season, Randle has averaged 20.1 points, 10 rebounds and 5.1 assists in 71 games in 35.3 minutes of action. Although impressive, such has not benefitted the Knicks this 2021-22 season.