Julius Randle Gets Paid by the New York Knicks

Julius Randle has parlayed his career-year into a massive extension with the New York Knicks, agreeing to a four-year extension worth $117M, which includes a player option for the last year of the deal - 2025-26. 

New York Knicks All-Star Julius Randle has agreed to a four-year, $117 million contract extension --- elevating his deal’s total value to five years and $140 million, his agents Aaron Mintz and Steven Heumann of @CAA_Basketball tell ESPN: https://t.co/4q7EfERHsw

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 5, 2021

In his second year with the Knicks, Randle put up career highs in a number of categories: 24.1 ppg, 10.2 rpg, 6.0 apg, 0.9 spg, 41.1 3P% (2.3 3PM/5.5 3PA) and 37.6 mpg, which led the entire NBA. He led the Knicks to their first playoff birth since 2012-13, was named NBA's Most Improved Player and earned a spot on the All-NBA 2nd Team. 

According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, 

Randle could've waited for his contract to expire next season and signed a new $200 million deal, but extending now off his current $19.8 million salary for 2021-22 gives the Knicks financial flexibility to shape the roster and allows him to commit through his prime to the franchise

Back in the middle of the season, Randle wrote a post on The Player's Tribune titled Reputation, discussing his happiness with playing in New York: 

More than any team I’ve ever been on, with this year’s Knicks, it feels like we have a collective purpose. And I think that’s also one of the things that Thibs (Tom Thibodeau) has been great at bringing to the table. This idea of how we can have our goals as individuals, and then our goals as a team and if we have the right mindset, there’s no reason those goals can’t feed into each other. It just feels like something good is happening.

Hopefully Randle can back up the career-year and lead the Knicks back into the playoffs during the 2021-22 season. 

Photo Credit: Elsa/POOL PHOTOS-USA TODAY Sports