Julius Randle #30 of the New York Knicks is congratulated by head coach Tom Thibodeau as he comes out of the game.
New York Knicks‘ two-time All-Star power forward Julius Randle is on track to rejoin the team for next week’s training camp following an ankle surgery in June.
“Just steady progress. He’s had a very good offseason. He’ll be fresh and ready to go,” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said in a Q&A with NBA.com’s Steve Aschburner.
Randle suffered a left ankle injury late in the regular season but soldiered on in the playoffs, where the Knicks reached the second round for the first time in a decade. With Randle hobbling, the Knicks fell short against eventual Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat in six games.
Randle appeared in tip-top shape in his workout videos that are going viral on X (formerly Twitter).
Julius Randle 🏋🏿
(📸: trainer Amoila Cesar)
Randle is expected to play heavy minutes anew following the trade of his backup Obi Toppin, to the Indiana Pacers. Before his injury, Randle returned to his All-Star form, averaging a career-high 25.1 points on 46% shooting and 34% clip from 3-point range on top of 10 rebounds and 4.1 assists.
ESPN’s senior writer Zach Lowe pins Randle as the key to the Knicks getting over the second-round hump as they loom to be a serious playoff contender next season.
“The big obstacle for them in the playoffs, assuming they get back, is Julius Randle has to play better. He’s 34% from the field in his career for the playoffs. He’s been there twice. He shot poorly both times. That’s the next level for him and them, but the NBA Finals? That’s a little [too] much,” Lowe said on the September 21 episode of the “NBA Today” on ESPN.
Tom Thibodeau Hopes to Revive ’90s Knicks’ Magic
As the Knicks try to build on their most successful season in a decade, coach Tom Thibodeau wants to keep it going by bringing back the good old days of the ’90s.
The Knicks will hold their training camp in Charleston, South Carolina from October 3 to 7 at The Citadel’s McAlister FieldHouse, according to The Post and Courier.
It will mark the first time the Knicks will hold camp in the Lowcountry since 2008.
The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina, is where the team used to hold training camps in their glory days in the ’90s — a tradition that former coach Pat Riley started. Thibodeau experienced those good old days as an assistant coach under Van Gundy, who continued the tradition. Interestingly, the only year they missed going there under Van Gundy was before their Cinderella run to the NBA Finals during the lockout-shortened season in 1998.
Knicks Promote Gersson Rosas
The Knicks promoted Gersson Rosas to senior vice president of basketball operations, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
The promotion was expected after the Knicks did not renew Scott Perry‘s contract as general manager.
Rosas, who joined the Knicks as a senior basketball in February last year, quickly rose to a prominent role in the organization. He led the failed Donovan Mitchell trade negotiation last summer, per multiple reports.
Rosas is now the third in command behind Knicks president Leon Rose and executive vice president William Wesley.