Tag: Julius Randle

Billy Donovan credits Jalen Brunson, Julius Randle in Bulls loss to Knicks

After the Chicago Bulls’ 116-100 loss to the New York Knicks, Billy Donovan credited Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle.

Despite sitting at the bottom of the Play-In Tournament race, the Chicago Bulls have sneakily been one of the better teams in basketball over. the past few weeks. Led by Coby White and DeMar DeRozan, they’ve made a small push. Unfortunately, they couldn’t get the job done on Wednesday night against the New York Knicks.

The Bulls ended up losing by a score of 116-100 to the new-look Knicks, who just added OG Anunoby in a trade with the Toronto Raptors. However, it was Julius Randle who ended up leading the charge for New York, outdueling DeRozan and White, who led the Bulls in scoring.

After the game, Bulls head coach Billy Donovan credited Randle and Jalen Brunson for leading the way for New York.

“We had opportunities to make some plays and we didn’t make enough, and Randle and Brunson really played well down the stretch,” Donovan said via ESPN. “We just couldn’t convert enough of our opportunities.”

Randle ended the night with a game-high 31 points to go along with six rebounds and four assists while shooting 13-of-23 from the floor and 3-of-7 from distance.

Meanwhile, Brunson put up 31 points, three rebounds, and 13 assists while shooting 13-of-22 from the field and 4-of-9 from distance.

DeRozan led the Bulls in scoring with 28 points, while White put up 26 of his own.

In addition, Andre Drummond and Isaiah Hartenstein battled it out on the glass, finishing the game with 16 and 21 rebounds, respectively.

Chicago will head into their Friday night contest against the Charlotte Hornets looking to bounce back with a win.

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Immanuel Quickley outduels Kevin Porter Jr. as Knicks blast weary Rockets

Kevin Porter Jr. bounced back from an off night with 26 points on strong efficiency, but it wasn’t nearly enough on a career game by New York’s Immanuel Quickley. #Rockets

On the second night of a road back-to-back, the weary Rockets were no match for the rested Knicks in Monday’s 137-115 loss (box score) at Madison Square Garden. New York (43-33), which hadn’t played in four days, remains on course for a spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs, while Houston (18-58) is still last place in the West.

With the loss, Houston clinched one of the NBA’s three worst records of the 2022-23 season, which guarantees maximum odds of securing one of the top-four draft picks determined by the 2023 lottery.

Third-year guard Immanuel Quickley set a career-high with 40 points on elite efficiency, making 14-of-17 shots (82.4%) and 5-of-7 on 3-pointers (71.4%). Quickley also dished a team-high 9 assists for the Knicks. Veteran forward Julius Randle added 26 points on 10-of-19 shooting (52.6%), including 3-of-8 on 3-pointers (37.5%).

Kevin Porter Jr. bounced back from an off night Sunday with a team-high 26 points on 8-of-14 shooting (57.1%) and 3-of-6 from 3-point range (50%), but Porter and the rest of Houston’s backcourt struggled defensively to contain Quickley. Other double-figure scorers were:

  • Jalen Green: 19 points, 4 assists; 4-of-11 shooting (36.4%), 1-of-5 on 3-pointers (20.0%), 10-of-12 on free throws (83.3%)
  • KJ Martin: 18 points, 6 rebounds; 7-of-11 shooting (63.6%), 1-of-3 on 3-pointers (33.3%)
  • Jabari Smith Jr.: 14 points, 11 rebounds, career-high 6 assists; 6-of-13 shooting (46.2%)
  • Alperen Sengun: 11 points, 5 rebounds, 5 turnovers; 5-of-9 shooting (55.6%), 1-of-1 on 3-pointers
  • Tari Eason: 13 points, 8 rebounds; 5-of-11 shooting (45.5%)
  • Josh Christopher: 12 points, 6-of-10 shooting (60.0%)

The Rockets were competitive until late in the third quarter, but the game spiraled quickly once the second unit came in. Tired legs may have also been a factor.

Scroll on for highlights, postgame interviews and reaction by Houston fans and media members. The Rockets will conclude their five-game road trip with Wednesday night’s visit to Brooklyn. The tip is again scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Central.

Julius Randle yelled at teammate Immanuel Quickley, who was just helping him avoid a technical

New York Knicks forward Julius Randle is an All-Star, but his frustrations on the court are becoming an issue.

New York Knicks forward Julius Randle is an All-Star, but his frustrations on the court are becoming an issue.

During New York’s game against the Magic on Thursday, the 2021 NBA Most Improved Player argued with referee Leon Wood. The longtime official is a former first-round pick and he is one of just three former NBA players to become an NBA referee.

While the forward argued with Wood, his teammate Immanuel Quickley tried de-escalating the situation. But unfortunately, Randle remained heated with the situation and eventually, the two had to get separated before the problem became even bigger:

Randle, who was mocked by Jimmy Butler during New York’s loss against Miami on Wednesday, was eventually called for a technical foul for arguing with Wood.

This was the third consecutive game that he was called for a technical. But the brief scuffle with Quickley, the favorite to win the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year, was especially concerning.

Hopefully, the two players were able to settle the turmoil during the halftime break — especially considering Quickley was clearly just attempting to help his teammate avoid getting into trouble with the officials.

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D’Angelo Russell says he has no relationship with Julius Randle

Despite playing two seasons with Knicks forward Julius Randle, Lakers guard D’Angelo Russell said he has no friendship with him.

Sunday’s game between the Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks was a frustrating one for Lakers fans; their team lost, 112-108, and had its three-game winning streak snapped.

In some ways, it was a shootout between D’Angelo Russell and Julius Randle, especially in the first half.

Russell was white-hot to start the game. He propelled the Lakers to an early lead, but Randle responded with his own fireworks to put New York in front 62-59 at halftime.

At that point, Russell had 23 points on 9-of-10 shooting while Randle had  scored 25. They finished the game with 33 points apiece.

The two were teammates on the Lakers during the 2015-16 and 2016-17 seasons before Russell was traded to the Brooklyn Nets. When asked after the game what it was like to go up against Randle and trade hot streaks with each other, Russell said he has no relationship with the Knicks’ power forward.

Many lament the fact that many of today’s players are friends with each other, even when they play on different teams, and that there isn’t enough chippiness or competitiveness as a result. Perhaps Russell has more of an old-school mentality of wanting to beat people rather than be friends with them.

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D’Angelo Russell had a ruthless response about his lack of a relationship with Julius Randle

“I’m not really friends with anybody, to be honest. On the court, it’s no love.”

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D’Angelo Russell has played very well for the Lakers and has done it with extreme confidence both on and off the court.

Los Angeles drafted Russell as the No. 2 overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft but traded him in 2017. He was re-acquired by the franchise before the trade deadline, and he has since stepped up as a team leader while LeBron James is sidelined with an injury.

The guard recorded 28 points and 9 assists during a victory over the Raptors on Friday, then dropped 33 points and 8 assists against the Knicks on Sunday. But it wasn’t enough to defeat New York, led by a 33-point performance from Russell’s former teammate Julius Randle.

After the game, the Lakers guard was asked if it brought back any emotions playing against Randle. Here is what Russell said:

“I’m a fan of his game. No relationship. We played together [and] went our separate ways after that. It’s just been competitive energy ever since then. That’s how I am with everybody. I’m not really friends with anybody, to be honest. On the court, it’s no love. You just want to battle and try to get the win and maybe shake hands after.”

At least Russell acknowledged that he was a fan of Randle’s game. But that’s ice-cold stuff from the former No. 2 overall pick. Sheesh!

The Tip-Off

For The Win

NBA content from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

I wrote about the top NBA draft prospects who will participate in the upcoming March Madness tournament. Here is a brief excerpt:

“Houston’s Jarace Walker is an incredibly impactful defender more than capable of guarding both the ball handler and the screener in the pick-and-roll. Opponents are shooting just 29.7 percent in the paint when he is on the floor, per CBB Analytics.”

You can check out the full list here.

One to Watch

Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

(All odds via Tipico.)

Bucks (-1.5, -130) vs. Kings (+110), O/U 243.5, 10:00 PM ET

With all apologies to Grizzlies-Mavericks and the growing rivalry between Dillon Brooks and literally everyone in the league, this is the matchup of the night. Sacramento has the best offense in the NBA and the Bucks have the second-best defense. This should be fun.

Shootaround

Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

— Ranking all 68 of the 2023 men’s NCAA tournament teams by mascot

— 4 teams with the hardest path to the 2023 Men’s Final Four (including Duke)

— 5 decisions (Kansas out West!?) the NCAA men’s selection committee absolutely got wrong

— North Carolina quickly declined an NIT invitation after a historic NCAA tournament miss

2014 NBA redraft has Sixers taking Julius Randle with Joel Embiid gone

A re-draft of 2014 has the Philadelphia 76ers taking Julius Randle with Joel Embiid already off the board.

The 2014 NBA draft was an important one for the Philadelphia 76ers. In the middle of their rebuild and looking for a guy to build their team around and to lead them to success, the Sixers had the No. 3 pick in that draft.

Joel Embiid fell into their laps because he was dealing with injury issues while coming out of Kansas that scared off the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Milwaukee Bucks. Since then, Embiid has morphed into one of the elite players in the league and has established himself as a perennial MVP candidate.

Due to Embiid’s prolific scoring and what he has accomplished thus far, HoopsHype did a redraft of 2014 and has Embiid going No. 2 to the Bucks. Nikola Jokic goes No. 1 to Cleveland. It has the Sixers taking Julius Randle, who went No. 7 to the Los Angeles Lakers in this draft.

HoopsHype on Randle to Philadelphia at No. 3:

Despite a standout lone season at Kentucky, Julius Randle still took a slight tumble on draft night to No. 7 due to a perceived lack of outside shooting and his unwillingness to pass the ball in college. Few could have imagined how Randle would have blossomed in the NBA, as he’s actually now a plus-playmaker out of the frontcourt, a respectable outside shooter and an All-Star-level power forward overall.

Life would likely be far different for the Sixers had they taken Randle instead of Embiid. While Randle is a fine player and he is an All-Star, he is not quite the level of Embiid and that would have hurt Philadelphia’s rebuilding plans.

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2022-23 NBA MVP Ladder, Vol. 7: Nikola Jokic is creating separation but it’s still a race at the top

The top contenders have a month to close the gap on Jokic.

Welcome back to another NBA MVP ladder.

This is our first since the All-Star break, and things are shaping up for a very familiar race at the top.

Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Joel Embiid have separated themselves as the clear favorites. And while the betting odds suggest the race nearly over, I think it’s tighter than people want to believe. A month is a lot of time for things to change.

Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry drop off this ladder from last month’s Vol. 6 due to limited playing time (and a trade in KD’s case), which creates room for a couple newcomers. Let’s get into that and more.

Odds from BetMGM

Q&A: Julius Randle on the 3-point contest, his son’s viral reaction and a bounceback all-star season

“He might be more competitive than me.”

When Julius Randle was named an all-star in 2021, he was just a 26-year-old in the middle of a breakout season with little outside expectations for how far his team could go.

In 2023, he’s a two-time all-star with an entire city on his back.

It’s been clear in a resurgent season for Randle that the New York Knicks go as he goes. After missing the playoffs last year in what Randle agreed to be a down season for himself, the Knicks are rolling again and their leader is “a lot better” for the experience.

Randle’s bounceback even earned him a surprise invite to Saturday’s 3-point contest as an injury replacement. And while his 13 points weren’t the worst showing of the participants, they were just bad enough to turn his adorable son Kyden into a meme for the night.

Randle discussed that funny moment, his all-star experience and more with FTW in a conversation about his partnership with Starry, the NBA’s newest official soft drink.

This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.

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NBA Twitter reacts to Knicks rallying from 21 down to beat Sixers

NBA Twitter gives its best reactions to the New York Knicks rallying from a 21-point deficit to knock off the Philadelphia 76ers.

The Philadelphia 76ers visited the New York Knicks on Sunday night looking to extend their eight-game winning streak on the road. They built a 21-point lead, but let it slip away as the Knicks rallied to win, 108-97.

New York received 24 points from Julius Randle and Jalen Brunson had 21, but the Knicks received a big lift from the bench unit. Evan Fournier added 17 points off the bench. He received extended playing time because RJ Barrett felt ill. Miles McBride added 14 points while drilling three 3s, and Isaiah Hartenstein was terrific with 14 rebounds. He also bothered Joel Embiid.

Embiid led the Sixers with 31 points and 14 rebounds. Tobias Harris had 14 points and 10 rebounds. De’Anthony Melton had 14 points. James Harden added 12 points, 12 assists and eight rebounds, Tyrese Maxey added 12 points, and PJ Tucker had 10.

NBA Twitter gave its best reactions to the Sixers letting this one slip away:

Julius Randle laughing at Jaylen Brown missing 2 free throws became an instant meme

Too funny!

Someone made this same observation below, but as soon as I saw Knicks star Julius Randle laughing at Jaylen Brown after the Boston Celtics superstar missed a pair of late free throws to seal a win for New York, all I could think of was: Luka Doncic laughing at Devin Booker.

Brown was asked about maybe what was said in that moment, and he calmly replied, “I’m not sure what Julius said. I’m sure he was happy.”

Randle said after the game that he knows Brown is “a great player,” which is exactly the take here. Sometimes, you just miss two free throws in the clutch!

Here’s a sampling of the jokes and memes from that moment:

Too good!

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