I was incredibly against the trade for the salary dump it is, but after looking at Goldsberryās shot chart maps, Randle shoots almost 50% on corner 3ās.Ā Ā
Ā If (huge if) Finch can convince him to be a corner shooter when Ant/Gobert is on the floor, then be the primary offensive option in a super-SloMo role with 3-4 40% shooters surrounding him whenever Ant sits, it might actually work from a basketball perspective. Ā
Like I said, huge if though. Randle wants a super max, he doesnāt want to be relegated to being a spot up 3pt shooter. I guess time will tell.Ā
REACT_and_REDACT
Iām hoping ANTās personality and leadership, even as a young guy still, can get everyone marching to the same beat to just WIN games. I think Randleās personality and aggressiveness can totally work here.
Stunning_Passion5923
Good breakdown. I’m a little perplexed by those suggesting a Randle-Rudy frontcourt can’t work. Randle exclusively played alongside non-shooting bigs in NY, and Rudy had success playing alongside mediocre shooters in 2018-19 when the Jazz relied heavily on Favors, Jae Crowder, Royce O’Neil, and Rubio. This team has better shooting and defensive personnel than that Jazz team, and Randle at least shoots 3s at volume and can playmake from the perimeter. Very excited to see how it all fits.
beanie_mac
Iām at work, so unable to watch the video posted here. But as a die hard Knicks fan, I will give you my personal thoughts on Randle:
To preface this, I will state that I think a lot of people have misconceptions about Randle and who he is as a player. Many of the negative things youāll hear about him are being driven by fans that unnecessarily hate him or by people that donāt actually watch Knicks games. But here are some brief bullets about Randle as a player and what to expect from him.
He is a strong, bully-ball player that is difficult to guard 1v1 (hence why heās one of the [most double-teamed](https://x.com/NBA_University/status/1670433882259218432) players in the league). He is an exceptional shot creator and while he isnāt a sharpshooter from deep, he can still score at all 3-levels and hit threes when given opportunities.
ā¢ One of the best parts about Randleās game isnāt his ability to score imo, itās his ability to create shot opportunities for his teammates. He is a pretty unselfish player who has exceptional playmaking skills for his position and always looks to get his shooters open looks on the perimeter. Due to teamsā inability to defend him 1v1, Randle typically draws a ton of defensive attention and gravityā¦.which leads to open shooters all over the court. People claim he his a āblack holeā on offensive that slows stuff down. This isnāt really true. He has always made his teammates better and our offense was better with him on the court.
– Stats show that when Randle was on the floor, shooters like Brunson, [Donte](https://x.com/DJAceNBA/status/1798448758176251978), and [OG](https://x.com/ShaxNBA/status/1811936058117870039) got wayyy more open looks and shot at a much higher clip. This is because of Randleās gravity and his ability to find open guys, something I donāt think KAT really provided for yall. So I would expect guys like Ant, Conley, McDaniels, Donte, and others to have much better shot opportunities from three.
ā¢ Another thing I liked about Randle, that he doesnāt get enough credit for either, is his adaptability. Over the course of his 5 years in NY, Randle literally changed his playstyle every season to better fit the needs of the team. Heās extremely versatile and has shown he can change his game if needed.
ā¢ Randle is also an exceptional rebounder on both the defensive and offensive glass as a PF. Heās also a putback machine, as heās been top 4 in the league in PPP on the offensive glass. https://x.com/DJAceNBA/status/1793259374300828039. With Gobert, Reid, and Randle yall should have no problem dominating the glass.
Cons:
1) While Randle is a pretty decent on-ball defender, he is a poor help defender, is prone to mental lapses on d, and lackadaisical shot contests. Hopefully being with Ant, Gobert, and McDaniels will limit this.
2) Like other big men who handle the ball a lot, Randle can be prone to some ugly turnovers and can get himself in trouble when he over-dribbles or dribbles into traffic. But when compared to his counterparts like KD, Sabonis, and Giannis heās avg. less turnovers per game and a lower turnover % than all of them over the past two seasons.
Overall, I think yāall should be good with Randle in place of KAT. Heās not the shooter KAT is, and due to his smaller sizeā¦he isnāt the defender KAT is either. But his strengths outweigh his weaknesses imo. Heās a good scorer, tough shot maker, great playmaker for his position, and has an adaptable game that can fit whatever the team needs. Heās an All-NBA player with the 56th highest salary in the league who will help you win games. He has to prove himself in the playoffs, but if healthyā¦he should be fine.
Edit: I would also like to add that some of my favorite Randle performances over the past couple years came vs. Minnesota.
4 Comments
I was incredibly against the trade for the salary dump it is, but after looking at Goldsberryās shot chart maps, Randle shoots almost 50% on corner 3ās.Ā Ā
Ā If (huge if) Finch can convince him to be a corner shooter when Ant/Gobert is on the floor, then be the primary offensive option in a super-SloMo role with 3-4 40% shooters surrounding him whenever Ant sits, it might actually work from a basketball perspective. Ā
Like I said, huge if though. Randle wants a super max, he doesnāt want to be relegated to being a spot up 3pt shooter. I guess time will tell.Ā
Iām hoping ANTās personality and leadership, even as a young guy still, can get everyone marching to the same beat to just WIN games. I think Randleās personality and aggressiveness can totally work here.
Good breakdown. I’m a little perplexed by those suggesting a Randle-Rudy frontcourt can’t work. Randle exclusively played alongside non-shooting bigs in NY, and Rudy had success playing alongside mediocre shooters in 2018-19 when the Jazz relied heavily on Favors, Jae Crowder, Royce O’Neil, and Rubio. This team has better shooting and defensive personnel than that Jazz team, and Randle at least shoots 3s at volume and can playmake from the perimeter. Very excited to see how it all fits.
Iām at work, so unable to watch the video posted here. But as a die hard Knicks fan, I will give you my personal thoughts on Randle:
To preface this, I will state that I think a lot of people have misconceptions about Randle and who he is as a player. Many of the negative things youāll hear about him are being driven by fans that unnecessarily hate him or by people that donāt actually watch Knicks games. But here are some brief bullets about Randle as a player and what to expect from him.
Pros:
ā¢ Randle is a better offensive player than most ppl give him credit for. Heās a consistent 25/10/5 guy that can attack teams in a myriad of ways. In just 5 years as a Knick, he passed Patrick Ewing as the [franchise leader in 25+/10+/5+ games at 38](https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask?q=what+player+has+the+most+games+with+25%2B+points%2C+10%2B+rebounds%2C+and+5%2B+assists+in+knicks+history) (Ewing is second at 26).
He is a strong, bully-ball player that is difficult to guard 1v1 (hence why heās one of the [most double-teamed](https://x.com/NBA_University/status/1670433882259218432) players in the league). He is an exceptional shot creator and while he isnāt a sharpshooter from deep, he can still score at all 3-levels and hit threes when given opportunities.
ā¢ One of the best parts about Randleās game isnāt his ability to score imo, itās his ability to create shot opportunities for his teammates. He is a pretty unselfish player who has exceptional playmaking skills for his position and always looks to get his shooters open looks on the perimeter. Due to teamsā inability to defend him 1v1, Randle typically draws a ton of defensive attention and gravityā¦.which leads to open shooters all over the court. People claim he his a āblack holeā on offensive that slows stuff down. This isnāt really true. He has always made his teammates better and our offense was better with him on the court.
– Stats show that when Randle was on the floor, shooters like Brunson, [Donte](https://x.com/DJAceNBA/status/1798448758176251978), and [OG](https://x.com/ShaxNBA/status/1811936058117870039) got wayyy more open looks and shot at a much higher clip. This is because of Randleās gravity and his ability to find open guys, something I donāt think KAT really provided for yall. So I would expect guys like Ant, Conley, McDaniels, Donte, and others to have much better shot opportunities from three.
ā¢ Another thing I liked about Randle, that he doesnāt get enough credit for either, is his adaptability. Over the course of his 5 years in NY, Randle literally changed his playstyle every season to better fit the needs of the team. Heās extremely versatile and has shown he can change his game if needed.
ā¢ Randle is also an exceptional rebounder on both the defensive and offensive glass as a PF. Heās also a putback machine, as heās been top 4 in the league in PPP on the offensive glass. https://x.com/DJAceNBA/status/1793259374300828039. With Gobert, Reid, and Randle yall should have no problem dominating the glass.
Cons:
1) While Randle is a pretty decent on-ball defender, he is a poor help defender, is prone to mental lapses on d, and lackadaisical shot contests. Hopefully being with Ant, Gobert, and McDaniels will limit this.
2) Like other big men who handle the ball a lot, Randle can be prone to some ugly turnovers and can get himself in trouble when he over-dribbles or dribbles into traffic. But when compared to his counterparts like KD, Sabonis, and Giannis heās avg. less turnovers per game and a lower turnover % than all of them over the past two seasons.
Overall, I think yāall should be good with Randle in place of KAT. Heās not the shooter KAT is, and due to his smaller sizeā¦he isnāt the defender KAT is either. But his strengths outweigh his weaknesses imo. Heās a good scorer, tough shot maker, great playmaker for his position, and has an adaptable game that can fit whatever the team needs. Heās an All-NBA player with the 56th highest salary in the league who will help you win games. He has to prove himself in the playoffs, but if healthyā¦he should be fine.
Edit: I would also like to add that some of my favorite Randle performances over the past couple years came vs. Minnesota.
39 pts. in January 2024: https://youtu.be/9g8_R7YZNBU?si=Xkf5dqk00-C7qHmW
31 pts. (8 threes) in 2023: https://youtu.be/0VR0ufHiaeo?si=LgrDrSDtIASMWSQF
57 pts. in 2023: https://youtu.be/P2OkJkVQ7fI?si=tbm1xm6NEKsN5u78