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Exactly a year prior to his long-awaited MSG return, the highest mark of Julius Randle’s tenure was taking shape.
Randle, who was forging his third All-Star selection with the franchise, dropped 31 points in a Jan. 17 victory over the Rockets.
It jumpstarted a nine-game winning streak and, within two weeks, the Knicks completed their best month in 30 years.
In those January moments, the possibilities felt unburdened by ceilings.
The Knicks were the NBA’s best team in that window, peaking at a time when, a year later, they’re currently in the midst of a valley.
“That team was incredible, man. I feel like that was the best basketball I had played up until that point in my career,” Randle said in an interview with The Post, opening up for the first time about his five-season Knicks career. “Not just numbers, it was the flow.
“It was like — it was crazy, man. We went into every game expecting to win. Teams would hang around and we would end up winning by like 20 points. It felt like we were starting to get super dominant. We had everything. And everybody’s game was going to the next level. Chemistry was dope. It was unfortunate the injuries happened.
“But that team,” Randle added, “was incredible.”
It was also very short-lived.
Randle drove to the bucket against Miami on Jan. 27 and tumbled over Jaime Vasquez, ending his campaign with a dislocated shoulder.
The trade arrived eight months later, and Randle, who said he doesn’t dwell on the past, allowed himself to express disappointment about the ‘What if?’ nature of his last season in New York.
“It sucks,” Randle said. “I guess we’ll never know what could’ve been. I think the more unfortunate part is everything was a build, a constant build — I feel like all our teams overachieved year after year. And that team last year was our best team. So then to see if we could’ve taken it to where we had a shot, where we could’ve taken it without all the injuries, including myself. I think that was the most unfortunate part.”
It’s very easy to understand why Randle would’ve wanted to see the process through.
He started it, after all.
The Texas native joined the Knicks when stars were running away, when Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving were eagerly crossing the Manhattan Bridge.
The Knicks were a dumpster fire, a breeding ground for dysfunction, turnover and false hope.
On June 30, 2019 — the same night Randle agreed to his contract — the team released a statement basically apologizing for missing out on superstars.
“While we understand that some Knicks fans could be disappointed with tonight’s news. ….” the statement started.
It was a rough welcome as the consolation prize, but Randle knew what he was getting into.
He was advised to sign with other teams in free agency, insisting instead on not only the Knicks but contract bonuses for making the playoffs and the All-Star team.
The incentives were, at the time, considered unlikely. Randle did both three times.
“I enjoyed the challenge. And I think a big reason is my idol and my mentor is Kobe,” said Randle, who was teammates with Bryant for two seasons on the Lakers. “And I feel like it was his legacy and his imprint that he left on me — to do the impossible — and take on challenges that people don’t want to take on or are scared of or afraid of or whatever.”
Five years is an eternity in the NBA, and Randle was connected beyond the Garden walls.
His family grew in number and moved from Westchester to Manhattan, with Randle becoming one of the few Knicks to live within the five boroughs.
“It was one of the best decisions I ever made.” he said.
The most rewarding contribution, Randle added, was helping grow the Earl Monroe New Renaissance School in The Bronx, raising over $1.3 million for the students and helping this senior class reach 93 percent in college acceptance.
“That’s the impact that’s going to last forever,” said Randle, who had the school’s basketball court named after him in a ceremony just days before he was traded. “Fifty years from now they’re not going to remember me hitting a game-winner. But those kids being able to go college, change their lives. Go on to different things. That’s probably the best part — the impact that will last forever.”
Randle is correct about the students but probably selling his Knicks impact a tad short.
There were extreme ups – the game-winner against the Heat, the shocking rise to the fourth seed in the pandemic season — and downs — the thumbs-down incident, the 2023 playoffs.
But without debate, he represented the franchise’s best player since Carmelo Anthony — at least until Jalen Brunson finishes.
He ranks 17th in franchise history in points, 18th in rebounds, fourth in 3-pointers and joined Carmelo as the team’s only three-time All-Star since Patrick Ewing.
In 2021, following Randle’s peak as a Second Team All-NBA selection, he inked an extension below the max to allow the Knicks the flexibility to build out the roster.
The discount wasn’t as celebrated as Brunson’s, but the sentiment was similar.
“From the moment I signed here was, ‘How can I help the team win the championship.’ They always said it’s impossible to win in New York, etc., etc,” Randle said. “I wanted all my actions to be aligned with that. So it was really a no-brainer. The financial security and stability was there. So I wasn’t really worried about that. I wanted to win.”
Randle didn’t get to see that contract through in New York.
He was traded with Donte DiVincenzo for Karl-Anthony Towns and returned Friday night as an opponent and one of the biggest reasons the Knicks reside in their most prosperous stretch in over 20 years.
“I take a lot of pride in it,” Randle said. “It wasn’t in the greatest of places when I first got here. But being here from the start, I take a lot of pride in what we were able to build and just what this team meant to the city. And the success of the team and the joy it brought. I took a lot of pride in that. I always wore my heart on my sleeve.”
