The New York Knicks had a firm belief that Julius Randle will be able to play in their first quarterfinal match of the Eastern Conference against the Cavaliers. He had suffered a sprained ankle on March 29th while battling the Heat. As such, questions were rife over if the forward selected as part of the All-Stars could appear before the series began.
No One Should Have Doubted Julius Randle
However, perhaps the people who avidly follow Julius Randle were never bothered by such worries. This is because they would know about the player’s consistent determination that has been on display all through the season.
As such, Julius Randle not only played but also added 19 points to his team’s score. He caught onto 10 rebounds and assisted 4 times in nearly 34 minutes. Further, he helped his group, which already has a pretty tough mentality, to a decent 101 to 97 victory in the first game. Be that as it may, to his fans, it was perhaps not a surprise at all, but probably more of a sign of what’s to come.
Tom Thibodeau, the coach of the New York Knicks, said that the people surrounding Julius Randle all knew that he would give every ounce of effort he has in him. Tom pointed out that Randle had played through 77 games before the ankle injury, so if Randle had any opportunity to help, he definitely would.
After the end of the game, Julius Randle admitted that he had little doubt over whether he could play during his ankle rehabilitation. For the team, and Thibodeau, Julius Randle’s presence was precisely the lift he expected – the engine powering the Knicks’ roaring 51 to 38 advantage in rebounds over a lost Cavaliers team.
