Julius Randall may draw the ire of disappointed Knicks fans, but his performance on Monday night was nothing short of spectacular.
The 27-year-old power forward drained eight three-pointers in 13 attempts as the team topped the Minnesota Timberwolves at Madison Square Garden by a 120-107 margin, which also equaled his season record at 5-5.
This tied Randall’s single-game record for three.
Randley said of the game, “I think part of it is playing free, not second guessing, just relying on yourself.”
Randall finished the night with 31 points, while providing eight rebounds and three assists in the course of 32 minutes.
On Monday, the team set a franchise record by making 10 threes in the first quarter. They finished with 19.
So far this season, Randall is on pace to try 442.8 Three PointersWhich will be much higher than his previous high of 390 attempts, which he had recorded last year.
The power forward, who struggled at the start of the year, said he needs to break the vibe of bad games and focus on staying confident.
“It’s a lot of work. Obviously, you’ll go through spells where your confidence goes up and down. But that’s where mindfulness comes in,” Randley said.
Team fans were becoming frustrated with the veteran’s game of late, and called for fellow-power forward Obie Toppin to give more minutes – although head coach Tom Thibodeau has stuck with the veteran this year, giving him 33.7 minutes in each competition. play.
Meanwhile, Toppin has logged 17.3 minutes per game.
Randall is under contract for three more seasons later this year, with a player substitute in the previous year, and earns an average of over $25 million per season.
That long, top-dollar contract has some fans worrying he will be a drain on the team’s cap space and financial flexibility, but if he is able to continue playing the level shown on Monday, he could be worth every dollar. Worth it.
