Julius Randle officially signs his contract extension, talks to the media

We learned earlier in the summer that the Knicks had reached an agreement with star forward Julius Randle on a contract extension. On Friday, that extension became official.

Terms of the deal were not officially disclosed, but the extension is reportedly worth $117 million over four years, a bargain for a player of Randle’s caliber.

Julius met remotely with the New York media to discuss his new contract and the upcoming season. Why did he sign now instead of waiting for free agency in 2022? He just really likes being a Knick.

First of all, props to Julius for showing up in the DMX hoodie. That’s what we call leadership. Secondly, while we’ve heard star players make similar statements before, Randle is putting his money where his mouth is, sacrificing a significant chunk of change to stay in New York. He credited Leon Rose, Tom Thibodeau and the rest of the Knicks organization for giving him a reason to put his trust in staying put and competing for championships down the line.

Needless to say, Randle is excited about new teammates Evan Fournier and Kemba Walker:

“... Kemba and Evan, it’s going to be huge for us. Those guys can really make shots, spread the floor, make plays and give us a lot of firepower. I’m extremely excited. As long as we keep our main thing the main thing, defending and playing hard every night, I feel we’ll be an even better team so I’m excited.”

He even liked what he saw from the rooks in Summer League. “When I saw those guys, man, they’re competitive and they’re skilled,” Randle said. “Those guys sound like they’re going to get in and add to our core guys.”

Finally, Randle has a message for those who say last year’s All-NBA performance was a fluke:

One thing about Julius Randle: You don’t have to worry about handing him $100 mil only to find out he’s gone soft. Randle is already back in the gym, getting ready for the upcoming campaign.