Julius Randle needs surgery on his right shoulder and won’t play for the rest of the season. This is a big setback for the New York Knicks, especially since they were doing so well before he got hurt in January.
The Knicks announced on Thursday that Randle will be re-evaluated in five months, which means it’s not clear if he’ll be ready for the start of next season.
When Randle hurt his shoulder on January 27th during a game against the Miami Heat, the Knicks were having a great month, winning 14 out of 16 games, which tied for the second-most wins in a single month in the team’s history.
But without Randle, along with OG Anunoby and Mitchell Robinson, who have also been injured, the Knicks have dropped to fifth place in the Eastern Conference standings.
“It’s a tough situation for us, but we have to focus on the players we have and keep pushing forward,” said Knicks forward Josh Hart.
Randle decided to have surgery after hurting his shoulder again during a practice session over a month ago. Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said Randle was never cleared for full-contact practice, but he had been doing some workouts with controlled contact, which means there were some protective pads involved.
Randle got hurt when he fell hard during the game against the Heat. He has been trying to avoid surgery by doing rehab exercises, hoping to come back in time for the playoffs. The regular season ends soon, and the playoffs start on April 20th.
“We were trying to see if rehab would work and make his shoulder stronger so he could play,” Thibodeau said. “But it just wasn’t getting better, so surgery was the only option.” Randle consulted with several shoulder specialists, and they all agreed that surgery was necessary to prevent further damage.
“I wanted to try rehab first because I believe in my team, but it didn’t work out,” Randle said. “It’s disappointing, but surgery was the only choice left.” Randle had a great season, averaging 24 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 5.0 assists per game. He was also selected for his third All-Star team just days before he got injured.
Randle had ankle surgery in the offseason but came back strong this season. He was working hard to come back from his shoulder injury, but unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to avoid surgery.
