Knicks' Julius Randle Out vs. Cavs with Quad Injury; No Plans to Shut Down for Season
New York Knicks forward Julius Randle won't play in Saturday's game against the Cleveland Cavaliers.ย
According to The Athletic's Fred Katz, the team announced on Friday that Randle is dealing with a quad injury that will keep him out, but there are no plans to shut him down for the remainder of the season.ย
Randle broke out in 2020-21 and led the Knicks to the playoffs for the first time in eight years by averaging 24.1 points on 45.6 percent shooting (41.1 percent from three-point range).
His shot has been off all year in 2021-22, though, and he's posting 20.1 points on 41.1 percent shooting (30.8 percent from three).
The Knicks, who went 41-31 in 2020-21, have notably struggled as Randle's play has declined. They've gone just 34-43 and have been eliminated from playoff contention.
The 27-year-old has been in the starting lineup for all but five games thus far this year.
Randle, who isย vaccinatedย against COVID-19, missed a pair of Knicks road games on Dec. 31 and Jan. 2 (vs. the Oklahoma City Thunder and Toronto Raptors) after entering the league's health-and-safety protocols.
A sore right quadriceps tendon kept him off the court for the March 22 matchup with the Atlanta Hawks.ย
Without Randle, the Knicks put second-year forward Obiย Toppin in the starting lineup against Atlanta.ย Tajย Gibson and Jericho Sims were the team's frontcourt players off the bench.
The high-flying Toppin, a second-year pro out of Dayton, is averaging 7.6ย points and 3.5 rebounds in 15.6 minutes per game.
