New York Knicks fans, please stop hating on Julius Randle

Too many New York Knicks fans have gone back to their old ways of slandering Julius Randle and wanting him traded after his recent slump. I’m here to say: Knicks Fans, please stop hating on Julius Randle.

The day I’m writing this, November 29th happens to be Randle’s 27th birthday, an appropriate time to defend the Knicks’ on-court leader.

The New York Knicks wouldn’t be where they are today without Julius Randle

To Knicks fans that are up-in-arms about Randle not playing as well as he did last year, you guys have to relax. It’s only 1/4th of the way through the season, and people go through slumps.

Speaking of slumps also, I don’t see anyone mentioning that RJ Barrett is shooting 39% from the field this season. There’s no slander towards RJ, and in fact, nobody even mentions this.

I might be the biggest RJ Barrett supporter out of every Knicks fan.  RJ has been a topic in five of my last ten articles, and every single one has been positive about him.  However, Barrett has played like hot garbage over the last month.

Kemba Walker and Evan Fournier have also not played as well as Knicks fans have expected, however they seem to avoid the hate from Knicks fans.

The only guy who gets blamed when the Knicks lose is Randle.  However, he is not the only player who gets credit when the New York Knicks win.

Now I’m aware Randle is not playing as well as last year, and neither is Barrett.  The fact that the Knicks’ top two guys are both struggling shows that it is probably a team issue.

The Knicks’ defense has not been the same as last year. They are currently ranked 17th in defensive rating, a hard fall from defensive excellence last year.

If the two best players on the team are both struggling offensively, and the team as a whole is struggling defensively, it is clear this is not an individual player issue, it is a team issue.

And yes, Randle has not been scoring like last year but as recently by a recent DailyKnicks article from Max Hoover, Randle’s usage rate for a team’s offensive star is incredibly low, and both Randle and the Knicks are better when his usage is higher.

The Knicks have struggled to adjust to this new team that is stronger on offense than on defense.  Randle has struggled more as he is not being used as much in the role he was in last year.

Even when not scoring, Randle has shown ways to help the Knicks, as shown in the recent game against the Atlanta Hawks.

Randle has the Knicks’ best interests at heart, he has been the top player for a reason, and he most likely needs to adjust to this team that is better on offense, similar to RJ Barrett.

The starting five is much more talented this year, and roles are changing.  Randle has to adjust, and Knicks fans slandering a guy who has essentially turned the franchise around will not help anyone.

So from one Knicks fan to all the Knicks “fans” not showing Randle any patience, please, just shut up, or he’ll make you look foolish like he did to those who gave him hate after the 2019-2020 season.