The Knicks were the 4-seed in the Eastern Conference last season and along with Tom Thibodeau winning NBA Coach of the Year and Julius Randle being named the Most Improved Player, the New York Knicks and their fanbase seemed to have their “swag” back for the first time in years. 

However, their success has seemed to be very short-lived, as the Knicks are just 28-40 on the season, 5.5 games back from the Charlotte Hornets for the 10-seed in the Eastern Conference. 

Things have not gone according to plan for the Knicks this year, as it seems like the 2020-21 season was a “one-hit wonder” for them. 

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Knicks Expected to Keep Tom Thibodeau Beyond This Season

RJ Barrett has been having a really strong third-year in the league, showing flashes of his All-Star potential, but Julius Randle has seemed to regress and the rest of the Knicks’ roster has some major question marks surrounding it heading into the offseason.

With no major free agents expected to be available, the Knicks could have to turn their attention to the trade market in order to improve not just their outlook for the 2022-23 season, but their long-term future as well. 

Questions about Julius Randle’s long-term future have been beginning to form after his struggles leading up to the All-Star break this season, so could the Knicks actually consider trading the All-Star forward in the offseason? 

Randle has played well as of late for New York, but his status as being the “cornerstone” and “leader” of the Knicks is definitely in question, especially given the major step back they have taken as a franchise this year. 

It is unknown though at this time if the Knicks will explore trade opportunities for Randle in the offseason.

There are pros and cons to the Knicks possibly looking to move on from Julius Randle, so let’s take a look at if this would be a beneficial move for New York to pursue. 

 

Making The Case For Trading Julius Randle

Since joining the New York Knicks, Julius Randle has averaged 21.4 points, 10.0 rebounds, 4.8 assists and has shot 44.5% from the floor. 

However, Randle’s numerous have dropped by the following this year: -3.6 points, -0.3 rebounds, -0.8 assists, -3.6 FG%, and -9.4 3P%. 

If Julius Randle is going to be the leader of the New York Knicks and the face of the franchise, he needs to be finding ways to improve and this slight decrease in production this season has directly contributed to the Knicks going from a 41-31 team to already have 40 losses this season.