The Contract Commitment
Julius Randle is currently at the beginning of a four-year, $117+ million deal that runs through the 2025-2026 season. For all of you NBA math aficionados, it breaks down as follows:
- $23+ million in 2022-2023
- $25+ million in 2023-2024
- $27+ million in 2024-2025
- $29+ million in 2025-2026 (player option)
On one hand, the recent spending sprees in the NBA have helped this contract age better than expected. The deal’s total value ranks as the 52nd-highest contract in the league. This is good value for the best player on a playoff team. It does, however, become potentially disastrous when the 2021 version of Randle rears its head.
Consider the other contracts in the same range as the Knicks star, some are great deals for really good teams. Players like Jaylen Brown, Jimmy Butler, and CJ McCollum stand out.
Inversely, a number of adjacent deals have proven to be albatross contracts that are anchoring or eliminating the flexibility of their respective franchises. Consider examples like Gordon Hayward, Terry Rozier, D’Angelo Russell, and Duncan Robinson.
This begs a key question: Does Julius Randle fit into the first or second category? If the club believes he is a legitimate piece in a future championship contender, he is worth retaining. But, if it is more likely that his median places him at risk of falling into the latter group, why not sell while his value is arguably at its highest?