Julius Randle Reveals 'Darkest' NBA Moment, Talks Being Under 'Microscope' with Knicks
Minnesota Timberwolves forward Julius Randle opened up about the mental health struggles he experienced during his five seasons with the New York Knicks in a recent interview with The Athletic's Jon Krawczynski.
Randle told Krawczynski the lowest point of his NBA career took place during his fifth season with the Knicks, after he suffered a season-ending shoulder injury in January 2024.
According to Krawczynski, Randle felt "increasingly isolated" and "left behind" as the Knicks recorded their first 50-win campaign since 2000 and made it to the second round of the NBA playoffs without him.
"You know how New York is, man. You're under a different microscope," Randle told Krawczynski. "So it's like, you're not just battling and trying to win. It seems like you're battling a million different things."
Per Krawczynski, Randle said he "self-medicated with marijuana" while dealing with "depression, anger and anxiety" during that time.
"At the end of that time, I was kind of at my darkest moment," Randle told Krawczynski. "Just miserable, like in a way where I just was not having fun going to work every single day."
Randle continued, per Krawczynski: "I would just be in there watching TV in a dark room. I didn't even want to show my face. I kind of just wanted to be left alone and, like, in hiding. Just very frustrated and angry and all those different emotions. It just wasn't a good place to be in."
Randle was traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves ahead of the 2024-25 season, a move he initially said last October he was surprised by but quickly adjusted to.
"You want to be somewhere where you feel wanted. I feel wanted here," Randle said shortly after the trade last October, per ESPN's Jamal Collier.
Randle told Krawczynski he felt better mentally about his status with his team when a groin injury sidelined him for the entire month of February last winter.
"In New York, Randle felt like he was on the outside looking in at a team that was surging without him," Krawczynski wrote. "In Minnesota, the players and coaches made sure he was included in everything, and his view from the bench gave him clarity on what the Wolves needed from him."
Randle came back to finish out the season, then started all 15 playoff games for the Timberwolves as Minnesota made it as far as the Western Conference Finals before being eliminated by the eventual champion Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Timberwolves ultimately re-signed Randle in July on a reported three-year, $100 million deal with a player option for the 2027-28 season.
It looks like the trade to Minnesota ultimately worked out for both Randle and the Knicks, who acquired Karl-Anthony Towns in a deal that helped the team reach the Eastern Conference Finals last spring for the first time in 25 years.
