NEW YORK, August 25, 2021 – New York Knicks announced today that the team has signed Julius Randle, an All-NBA second team selection and the 2021 NBA’s Most Improved Player, to a contract extension. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
“Julius Randle embodies everything you want your star player and leader to be about, and we couldn’t be happier about the long-term commitment we made to each other,” said Knicks President Leon Rose. “His hard work and dedication to his craft are second to none and what he did last season won’t be forgotten by New Yorkers any time soon. We can’t wait to see what’s next for him.”
Randle, 6-8, 250-pounds, is coming off a career year in which he received numerous accolades including: NBA’s Most Improved player, an All-NBA second team selection, the eighth most votes for NBA MVP, an Eastern Conference All-Star selection and the Eastern Conference Player of the Month for April. He led the Knicks to the fourth best record in the Eastern Conference and to the postseason for the first time since 2012-13, while establishing career highs with 24.1 points and 6.0 assists over 37.6 minutes to go along with a team best 10.2 rebounds in 71 games (all starts).
Randle became the sixth player in NBA history and the first Knick to record at least 24.0 points, 10.0 rebounds and 6.0 assists in a season (Oscar Robertson, three), Wilt Chamberlain (two), Larry Bird (two), Russell Westbrook (two) and Nikola Jokic (once). He was one of five players in the NBA to average at least 20.0 points, 10.0 rebounds and 5.5 assists (Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokic, Domantas Sabonis and Russell Westbrook) and he set a new franchise record with 16 games of at least 25 points, 10 rebounds and five assists (previous high was 15 by Bob McAdoo, 1977-78). He also recorded six triple doubles, the most by a Knick in a season since Micheal Ray Richardson in 1981-82. His All-Star and All-NBA selections were the first of his career and he became the first Knick to make an All-NBA team since Carmelo Anthony in 2012-13 (second team).
He earned Eastern Conference Player of the Month honors in April, after he became the first Knick to average at least 25.0 points, 5.0 assists and 5.0 rebounds while shooting at least 40-percent from downtown. He was the first Knick to win Player of the Month since Carmelo Anthony in January 2014. On April 16, 2021, he recorded 44 points (6-11 3PT), 10 rebounds and seven assists in a 117-109 victory at Dallas, becoming the first player in franchise history to record at least 40 points, 10 rebounds, five made three pointers and five assists in a game (had two such games this season).
The Plano, TX-native holds career averages of 17.4 points, 9.2 rebounds, 3.3 assists over 30.5 minutes in 446 games (366 starts) over seven seasons with New York, New Orleans, and the Los Angeles Lakers. Originally selected by the Lakers with the seventh pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, Randle spent one season at Kentucky where he averaged 15.0 points and 10.4 rebounds in 40 games (all starts) earning 2013-14 All-SEC First Team, 2013-14 SEC Rookie of the Year and 2014 NCAA All-Tournament honors.
