Stefan Bondy (NY Daily News) wrote about Julius Randle’s recent appearance on The Shop Uninterrupted.
The show was taped live in Brooklyn and also featured Method Man and Joe Bada$$.
While there, Randle pontificated on various topics and predicted that he would be at his physical and mental peak next season.
After the New York Knicks bowed out of the second round of the 2023 playoffs, Julius required arthroscopic surgery on his ankle. He had sprained it twice and the injury hampered his postseason performance.
“I feel your peak is when your mental and physical type meet. And physically I feel like this is going to be my best year yet. But mentally I feel like I took a huge step because I had to slow down all the way. I was not allowed to train.
Randle recently revealed on the Paul George podcast that he was forced to watch more movies than usual while recovering from surgery. In his in-store appearance, he elaborated.
“I studied many people. I studied LeBron and saw how he used corners,” the 28-year-old forward said. He added that the work ethic of Jalen Brunson and Jimmy Butler has “pushed” him on a motivational level.
No Randle media appearance is complete without questions about the pressure he feels in New York. “Yes, it’s different. It is definitely different from everywhere else. It’s hard. . . . But I could tell that being here in New York has made me who I am to this day”.