Julius Randle #30 of the New York Knicks watches as teammate Jalen Brunson #11 shoots a free throw.
Coming off a second ankle injury in a span of four weeks, Julius Randle played above expectations as he helped the New York Knicks tie the series in Game 2 with a 111-105 win over a Jimmy Butler-less Miami Heat in their NBA Eastern Conference semifinal series.
Randle rattled off a playoff career-high 25 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists with no signs of ill effects from his injury.
“It was hell,” Randle told reporters of what he went through to get back to his All-Star form. “Just every day around the clock, trying to get my body right. I don’t have a problem doing the work. Mentally, it’s a grind.”
“But like I said I just want to make myself available for the team and you know whatever I can give the team to try to help us get a win. That’s what matters, so I’m just happy that I was able to be out there and contribute and help us get a win,” he added.
Randle did not look for his shot to open the game. He let the game come to him.
By the time he made his first basket with 8:28 left in the first quarter, Randle already had two assists.
He played decoy at first, setting up Jalen Brunson for a 3-pointer for the Knicks’ first basket. Moments later, the Heat doubled him in the corner, and he flicked a crosscourt pass to a wide-open RJ Barrett, who drilled another 3-pointer.
The Knicks went 16-of-40 from deep this time after a horrendous 7-of-34 shooting in Game 1.
Randle’s presence alone demanded so much attention from the Heat’s defense. The constant double-team defense he drew meant one of his teammates was wide-open.
Randle read the game well.
Six of Randle’s eight assists led to a 3-pointer. He could have finished with a triple-double if screen assists were counted on the box score. He had a couple of them. Overall, Randle accounted for at least 51 of the Knicks’ 111 points.
The Knicks had outscored the Heat by 14 when Randle was on the floor, the second-best plus-minus of the night behind Josh Hart’s plus-16.
“Whatever it takes to win the game at this point,” Randle said when asked what he felt he and Brunson, who was also nursing a sore right ankle, brought to the game.
The Knicks are glad Randle pushed them to return in Game 2.
Julius Randle gets asked if he was pushing the Knicks to play in Game 2. He chuckles to himself and goes, “Yeah, there was no way I was sitting out of that one.”
They averted what could have been a disastrous 0-2 deficit, which only 33 out of 413 teams — a winning percentage of just 7.4% — have recovered from.
Julius Randle Invited Jessica Alba for Game 2
Randle played an inspired game in front of another sellout Madison Square Garden crowd in his return. Among the spectators from the celebrity row is 42-year-old actress Jessica Alba.
It turned out it was Randle, who invited the Fantastic Four actress.
“Congrats @nyknicks on the W! 🎉 Thank you @juliusrandle30 for the invite, you are a kind soul 🙏🏽 and it was awesome watching your leadership on the court. 🏀 Also – @madelyncline you are the sweetest and now my girls think I’m kind of cool, 😜” posted on her Instagram.
Knicks’ Game-Turning Huddle
It was not a smooth sailing for Randle and the Knicks despite his near triple-double performance.
They stared at a six-point deficit 93-87 midway in the fourth quarter which forced Tom Thibodeau to call a timeout and pulled out RJ Barrett, who was struggling on stopping Miami Heat’s undrafted guard Gabe Vincent at that point.
It turned out be a Thibodeau master stroke as the Knicks went on a 14-3 run to tie the series.
“I mean, just stay with it,” Randle said on the MSG Network postgame show when asked what did they talk about during that crucial timeout. “You know, no matter what, [in the] playoffs, there’s gonna be ups and downs; it’s gonna be rough. But as long as we stay together, we feel like we’ll give ourselves a chance to win. And that’s what we did.”