Julius Randle was an All-Star for the New York Knicks during the 2020-21 season, and there is no doubt that he was one of the best power forwards in the league that year. However, he has not been able to recapture that form and has looked like a shell of his former self since.
However, there is a chance that Julius Randle could be a better player if put in the right situation. A recent article by Thomas Darro of Heavy revealed that the Miami Heat could potentially end up trading for the former All-Star.
“The Knicks would not trade him just for cap space, just because he got the big contract. Remember he is a CAA guy, and CAA is Leon (Rose’s) old agency. But sending him back to the Lakers would be something both sides would probably welcome. But what are the Lakers going to give back, Russ (Westbrook)? The Knicks don’t see Randle as that much of a problem that they need to dump him. If the Lakers included one of their picks (2027 or 2029 first-rounders), that would change the Knicks’ thinking but it is hard to see the Lakers doing that.
Miami is probably the big team that will be looking for a power forward and he would at least be interesting there with Bam (Adebayo) and Jimmy Butler. They’d have to make up for him on the defensive end, but they are good at scheming that way and they’ve been really bad on the offensive end. The Knicks would have to take back (Duncan) Robinson and a couple of their young guys like (Omer) Yurtseven and (Nikola Jovic), something like that. The Knicks would have to trust Obi (Toppin) to take that spot, too. You could make it work but it might not be the best thing for either side, really,” the executive told Heavy Sports.
There’s no doubt that Julius Randle could potentially improve the Miami Heat’s offense. The New York Knicks were previously exploring trades for the power forward, and perhaps it would be best for them to let him go while getting a solid package in return.
Julius Randle Is Still An Effective Player
Though Julius Randle might not be a No. 1 option, perhaps he could be a player that can be effective in a smaller role. Stephen A. Smith previously suggested that Randle could be an “elite No. 3 option” or a “quality No. 2 option”.
“Julius Randle is not a No. 1 option. And I’m not gonna crucify him on this particular day because he had a phenomenal season. … The bottom line is what you learn was his limitations. Julius Randle is an elite No. 3 option, a quality No. 2 option, but damn sure ain’t a No. 1 option.”
It remains to be seen if a team does decide to trade for Julius Randle. He is definitely a player that is worth trading for as a reclamation project, and perhaps he’ll be a solid contributor on a contending team in the future.
As of right now, though, Julius Randle is likely focused on helping the New York Knicks make the playoffs once again. Hopefully, they are able to do that this year, and their pathway to getting there likely will lie in the play-in tournament.
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