Julius Randle has given the New York Knicks new life after a seven-year stretch of mediocrity, and his performance through his first 309 games on Broadway stack up strikingly against that of former Knicks All-Star Carmelo Anthony.
Knicks: Randle and Anthony Neck-and-Neck in Many Statistical Categories & Achievements
Knicksmuse put together a side-by-side evaluation of Randle and Anthony through 309 games, and the former has the upper hand in many categories:
Randle has made a name for himself as not only a scorer but also an upper-echelon distributor in the power forward position. His ability to set up teammates has gotten him the 1,444 assists that trump that of Anthony’s 937.
Not known as a distributor and often castigated for his tunnel vision, Anthony was still able to scratch at the door of 1,000 dimes in that time frame. However, Anthony’s scoring prowess was never debated at any point in his career, especially while in the Big Apple.
Though Randle has put together a couple of 25-point-per-game campaigns, Anthony did most of his dirty work on the offensive end. His 8,006 points were fueled by his 28.7 points per game in 2012-13 which earned him that year’s NBA scoring title, and 27.4 points a night the following season. Both were two of his four highest-scoring seasons in his career.
- Knicks have answer to defensive woes already on the roster
- Knicks have pressing need for reinforcements prior to deadline
- Knicks’ first-round pick making rapid strides in development
Can Randle Steal the Hearts of Knicks Fans the Way Anthony Did?
Noticeably, Anthony trails Randle in three-pointers made. While the NBA game was in a transitional phase, while Anthony donned the orange and blue, he was a volume shooter from outside. Randle has taken many threes in his Knicks tenure and has profited off of the three-point revolution.
Both Knicks franchise players came in nearly identical in wins and true shooting percentage. Anthony’s impact on the Knicks and the city of New York is felt to this day despite delivering only one playoff series win. Randle has already matched that, and should he lead the Knicks further than the Eastern Conference semifinals before he hangs it up, he could find himself in New York basketball lore like Anthony has.