Knicks' Julius Randle Fined $50K After Altercation with Suns' Cameron Johnson

The NBA fined New York Knicks forward Julius Randle $50,000 for his actions during Friday's 115-114 loss to Phoenix Suns.

The league announced the fine was "for initiating an on-court altercation by forcefully shoving Phoenix Suns forward Cam Johnson, making contact with a game official in his attempt to get at Johnson, and for his noncompliance with an NBA investigation."

Randle and Johnson were each whistled for technical fouls in the third quarter of Friday's game after exchanging words and bumping chests, but the Knicks playmaker continued when he went through a ref to shove his counterpart. He was then ejected.

That exchange proved costly for a number of reasons, not the least of which was Johnson remaining in the game and then banking in a winning three-pointer ahead of the buzzer. He finished with 38 points in a brilliant performance, and Randle was unable to match him after he was ejected.

"You've got to know where to stop," Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau told reporters following the loss. "None of us are perfect and we are going to make mistakes, but you've got to be disciplined."

New York was ahead by double digits when Randle was ejected thanks in large part to his 25 points, seven rebounds and four assists.

There was surely some lingering frustration on the Knicks' side given their recent level of play. Friday's loss was their seventh in a row and dropped them to an ugly 3-17 in their past 20 games. They are nowhere near the team that made the playoffs in front of raucous crowds at Madison Square Garden last season.

There may also be larger concerns for the team when it comes to Randle.

Marc Berman of the New York Post reported his "overall psyche is of concern inside the Knicks organization." The report pointed to Randle showing up to training camp not in the same level of shape he was in during the 2020-21 campaign and highlighted the sense he has "seemed angry all year."

Randle even previously apologized this season for giving Knicks fans a thumbs-down gesture he said was to get them to "shut the f--k up" after booing.

The incident with Johnson is just his latest one, and he will pay for it with Sunday's fine.