Post#127 » by Chanel Bomber » Mon Sep 30, 2024 7:11 am
Julius was all in all a « very good » Knick and one of the few in the 21st century who mattered.
3 great seasons and 2 miserable seasons in 5 years. Helped the Knicks rise from the dead in the most dire context (a global pandemic). I don’t care much for individual accolades, but 3x All-Star and 2x All-NBA is a significant achievement for a basketball player, and one that he earned.
He was also infuriating to watch, and somebody who made it difficult to relate to. I never liked watching him play. There was no flair to his game. He was highly talented, but at heart he was a bruiser, who played with force as much he played slow. His game almost felt industrial. His charisma was non-existent.
He was nevertheless a great player for the most part.
He always received a disproportionate amount of hate from the fanbase here, especially when RJ and Obi were here. I disliked how the crowd was so prompt to boo him in his third season. I disliked how some fans stomped on his poster and raged about him on social media. I disliked how some went back-and-forth between chanting MVP for him, to booing him, to cheering for him, to booing him again, and to now pretending that losing him for KAT is the end of the world. Not all the same people, sure, but his career here encapsulated the insanity of the fan.
Randle did a lot for this franchise and truly helped restore its wider image. The Knicks came a long way from his arrival to his departure, and he was the constant (along with Brunson who came later). Just as with Melo, his work was incomplete, but his contribution was meaningful.
Thanks and good luck.