Knicks’ Value for Julius Randle is Highest in NBA

The New York Knicks have to make a decision soon in regards to the future of three-time All-Star Julius Randle.

Randle, who turns 30 in November, is a free agent at season’s end, which could lead the Knicks to want to trade him to the highest bidder. However, The Athletic insider Fred Katz belives that is not a possibility at this time.

“I don’t believe there is a team in the NBA that would value the three-time All-Star more than the Knicks do,” Katz writes. “Randle’s contract is fair. He makes $28.9 million this season and can become a free agent next summer. But the fear of having to pay him, especially when his skill set makes him such a specific fit, makes it difficult to find suitors willing to give up any package that would be worth it for the Knicks. … There is no indication the Knicks are trying to trade Randle, which means it’s difficult to gather a true gauge of his market.”

Randle averaged 24.0 points, 9.2 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game this past season for the Knicks, but only made 46 appearances due to a shoulder injury that knocked him out for the year in late January. Randle was forced to sit on the sidelines as the Knicks won 50 games and the Eastern Conference’s No. 2 seed, allowing them to make a run to the second round of the playoffs, where they lost to the Indiana Pacers in seven games.

The Knicks experienced success without Randle, but that doesn’t mean the team wants to move on from him. New York believes the team will be even better with Randle on the floor next to Jalen Brunson, OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges in the starting lineup. And if the Knicks are right in that thinking, Randle will be given an extension in due time.

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