Knicks striker Julius Randle did not pull out a double triple, but pulled out a triple crown on All-Star Sunday.
He competed in the skill competition, was used as a prop in the Slam Dunk contest and played 13 minutes in his first All-Star game.
In a limited action in the main event, Randle scored two early buckets – one on a power dunk – for four points and threw an alley-oop pass to Donovan Mitchell for a dunk.
“It’s been a long day,” Randle said. “I will not lie.”
After playing in all of Knicks’ 38 games and leading the NBA in total minutes, he was well on his way to a back-to-back spot as Durant’s side suffered a 170-150 loss to LeBron.
“It’s a great thing,” Randle said of his limited minutes. “I lead the league in a few minutes. It’s a great thing. Believe me, I’m fine.
“It was wonderful. Definitely everything I imagined I was part of. I had a lot of fun, [was] excited. It’s something I want to be a lot more of. It was a great experience, the conversations. It is an experience I will never forget – the first. ”
At the break, Knicks’ beginner Obi Toppin called Randle to sit next to his father so he could jump over the two.
“I was confident,” Randle said. “She did it 10 times [Saturday]. [Saturday], I was worried. Today, he did it so much that I didn’t have to worry. ”
On March 11, Randle was at a low point when he realized his first season, as a Knick had ended due to the pandemic, interrupted to change his disappointing season.
Flash forward a year later, and Randle and family were in Atlanta this weekend. His wife Kendra, whom he met in Kentucky, and his 4-year-old son Kyden were in the courtyard at State Farm Arena on Sunday night.
It can change lives like a knick so fast.
“He likes it,” Randle said of his son. “He certainly knows it’s something that’s not normal and cool. He definitely loves that. He likes to walk around saying he’s a star kid. Likes. ”
Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said entering the All-Star Randle break plays like an “All-NBA player.” Three All-NBA teams are announced after the season, and Randle’s numbers – if they keep up – could easily get there if the Knicks make the playoffs.
Randle, 26, admitted on a recent podcast that he cried when the coaches who taught him voted him an All-Star reserve for the Eastern Conference.
“It was more, as much as being called an All-Star, it was more of the journey,” Randle said Sunday. “Appreciate the seven years so far in the league, the journey and the process, year after year and grinding, hard work, sacrifice, commitment through the process. It made me reflect and appreciate that process more than anything. ”
The Knicks are in fifth place in the East thanks to Ironle’s will.
He didn’t miss a game. He averaged 23.2 points, 11.1 rebounds and 5.5 assists. He spent the last two weeks thinking deeply about how he was so disappointed that he failed as a leader in his first season during last season’s Knicks mess.
Now you can call the Knicks leader, Captain Randle, although Thibodeau does not believe in awarding titles.
“It means a lot – it’s a responsibility I really enjoy,” Randle said. “A lot of things about my driving style are being vocal, but I try to lead by example – the way I approach work and study the game. Do things the right way. It’s a big responsibility I like to have. I hope that in the second half I will continue to do this and I will be the best leader I can. We hope that translates into victories. ”