Where's the Original Julius Randle When You Need Him?

The Knicks have a deep and talented roster, but it ain't like they're the '03-04 Pistons.  You know what I'm saying?  This is a team that actually needs a distinguishable alpha, and Julius Randle is the only one who can fit that bill, you know, like if he wanted to type shit.

I had my suspicions of Jalen Brunson, but dude grew on me after awhile, and one thing I can say by observing his move to the Knicks is this.  There's a difference between being a star and a superstar.  The presence of a superstar, like Luka Doncic for instance, automatically elevates a roster from where it was before to at least the next-highest tier.  But a star needs a superstar in order to be recognized, like what happened to Brunson in Dallas.  In other words, there's a difference between flourishing when your the second or third option who steps up when need be and doing so when the onus is on you, daily, to win.

Also, I understand why the Knicks gave RJ Barrett that money, because he was the first player they drafted since like Porzingis whose earned like a high trade value.  You know what I mean?  It always makes an organization look better when they draft 'a star' rather than trading or getting one from free agency.  But I can't sit here and believe that anyone among NYK's actual braintrust actually believed he was a franchise player when giving him that contract.  Barrett is more like a really-skilled third option.  And all things considered there's nothing wrong with NYK giving him $100mil+ to be that, if they actually knew what they were doing.

The real culprit here, in like a Ben Simmons way, is Julius Randle.  Randle, to me, is a prime example of why players should always be cautious taking advice from the mainstream media or even coaches at times.  When he came into the NBA, he was instantly to be one of the best lowpost bigmen.  Then somewhere along the lines, he started that jumpshooting BS.  And now, it's like how often do you see him grinding downlow?  When the NBA or whoever started promoting jumpshooting over interior offense, they should have known that instead of seeing the big picture, some players would just take the easy way out and stop working hard on offense, you know what I mean, like struggling to get closer to the basket or even truly open.

And I can remember when this all started, during the 2020-21 Playoffs.  The Knicks were surprisingly good that season, and those of us who spent years being tortured by their incompetency were looking forward to the squad finally winning a series.  That was the year that Julius Randle went to the All-Star Game.  And guess what?  Thibs decided to instead give the keys to the car to D-Rose, Randle scored fewer pts than in the regular season, and the Knicks almost ended up getting swept by the lower-seeded Hawks team.

CONCLUSION

Shai-Gilgeous Alexander is a player who, from the time he entered the NBA up until now, keeps continually proving that he's better than anyone expected.  When he was drafted by the Clippers, no one was really expecting that one day he'd truly surpass CP3.  But I don't think the Knicks' problems could be solved with a G, even if it was Donovan Mitchell.  For some reason you never really hear shit about Mitchell Robinson, and Randle is out playing pansy near the three-point line.  So now, it's like their main bigman is that big white dude?

So maybe, idk, the Knicks will be incepted to take the idea of an Anthony Davis trade more seriously.  He's a bigman who is ready, willing and able to takeover games, and I can actually picture Barrett and even Brunson flourishing next to him, because then no one is going to expect them to be what they aren't.

Randle is still averaging an impressive 9rpg, but let's just say that he's no Giannis.  And him going to back to the Lakers, along with other young(er) players, may be just what uncles Lebron and Russ need.