MINNEAPOLIS — These NBA playoffs have produced some defining images on the way to the Finals: Tyrese Haliburton cementing himself as a big-city villain, Jalen Brunson as a certified crunch-time star, and Jayson Tatum writhing in pain.
But perhaps the most refreshing picture is Julius Randle, dipping his shoulder into the chests of LeBron James and Draymond Green, either as a graceful bully or a forceful finesse star.
He’s been the perfect contrast to Anthony Edwards’ shooting star in Minneapolis and, surprisingly, a connector to the rest of the Timberwolves on their run to the Western Conference finals, which the Thunder lead 2-1 entering Monday night’s Game 4.
At his best on the highest stage, Randle looks like he’s relishing these moments. He averaged 27 points, 7.8 assists and 7.5 rebounds in the last four games of the Warriors series, and scored 28 and 24 in Games 1 and 3 of the Western finals on 60%-plus shooting.
The bad games have been almost nonexistent, the forlorn looks and drooped facial expressions have come few and far between. It’s not quite a new and improved Julius Randle, just a smoothed-out version, a freer one that, despite the stakes, isn’t putting the weight of the world on those shoulders.
“The amount of s*** Julius takes, it’s hard to even fathom how he deals with it,” Timberwolves guard Donte DiVincenzo told Yahoo Sports. “To see him carry the load, night in and night out, everybody knows how much stuff he deals with, everybody knows how much flak he [catches], and he doesn’t let it faze him, he doesn’t let it bother him.”
He’s changing how the NBA world views him, that he couldn’t be a winning player, that he had to be ultra-ball dominant. Game by game, it’s happening.
“I’ve always used that as motivation, proving people wrong and stuff like that,” Randle told Yahoo Sports. “But it became more about proving myself right. That’s been the biggest adjustment and change in my mindset.
“Not that you don’t see it, pay attention to it. But it’s more about me than anyone else. I mean, I think that’s kind of been the maturity of my approach. I feel like the weight of the world’s off my shoulders because I’m just playing, having fun.
“It’s not for anybody else, but for myself and for my teammates and people that pour into me and love me. I’m not out here to prove anybody wrong or change a narrative.”
Green openly stated Randle won the matchup in the Golden State-Minnesota second-round series, which the Timberwolves won in five games. And anybody with working eyes could see how he took the game to James in the first round, wearing him and any other Laker down with his physical play.
It’s his own Mamba Mentality.
I’ve always used that as motivation, proving people wrong. But it became more about proving myself right.Julius Randle
“It’s a competitive energy,” Randle said. “Kobe [Bryant] is my favorite player. He’s not my favorite player because I grew up playing like Kobe. Anthony Edwards is Kobe, you know what I’m saying? My whole thing with Kobe was, his mindset was different. He’s trying to break your will. He’s as competitive as anybody I’ve ever seen, playing against, played with.”
Randle could see the effects of his physicality in the first two rounds, so even if the bruising was making him sore, it was doing more damage to them.
“You see it in their eyes. Not specifically those two, but you see it in their eyes,” Randle said. “I had dudes come to me like ‘Ju, please. Not this play.’ You see dudes is not trying to deal with that. I spend so much damn time in the weight room, I gotta use it. It’s one of the gifts God gave me, my strength and physicality.
“I’m not blessed like Ant with a 50-inch vertical [laughs’, so I gotta use what I have.”
He chuckles watching Edwards and his shootaround antics. There’s a genuine lightness to Randle nowadays. He’s able to step outside of his own play and be present in ways he couldn’t allow himself to be before. Cheering on teammates even if he’s not playing well, doing the little things to remain connected to the team.
“I was injured, but it was the first time I was injured (in late January) where I felt like I was still playing,” Randle said. “Because I was so engaged with the group and everybody was so welcoming.
“I didn’t isolate myself. I’m on the bench, cheering guys on, dude comes off the court and I’m giving them advice. Just being in tune.”
He admits he wasn’t always that guy.
“No. No. No. Because I always felt like if I wasn’t playing then I wasn’t valuable,” Randle said. “I didn’t understand my voice and my leadership until I got here. So when I came back it was like, anything I can do to help these dudes win. I don’t care if I score five points. How can I be the best version of myself and help us get wins? That was my mindset. I don’t have to be anything other than myself.”
It took an amazing amount of self-awareness to get to this point, and it’s easy to see how happy he is to reach this level of zen. He leaned on his wife, his mother, whom he affectionately calls “the definition of a praying mother,” and his agent, Aaron Mintz, to help him through each struggle, each transition.
Because it was choppy at first. The early chemistry between himself and Rudy Gobert wasn’t easy. The notable example being the late November game in Toronto where Gobert had a man sealed and called for the ball, but Randle didn’t deliver it, resulting in a three-second violation. To be fair, Gobert doesn’t have the surest set of hands, but keeping him engaged on offense means he’ll be a terror on defense — a tight walk of tight walks.
That was late in the fourth quarter of a loss, thus illustrating the disconnect. The concern that two players who had reputations of being moody would derail the Timberwolves’ chances of getting back to the conference finals was coming to bear.
“Chemistry, we had some growing pains,” Gobert told Yahoo Sports. “Some tough, rough patches during the season. But he’s resilient, I’m resilient. Our team is resilient. And I think when he came back from injury, I came back from injury that last part of the season, I think things really started to click for us on both ends.”
Losing six of eight in late February, the Timberwolves were 32-29, but Randle was seeing things positively as he was slated to return from a monthlong right groin injury.
“It was crazy, the worst of days this season. A new situation, we’re not playing well, I’m not playing my best, it’s ups and downs … but the support from the internal organization was always great. Very inclusive, making me feel like family.”
Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly took Randle out to dinner, frequently checking on him. Head coach Chris Finch did the same with text messages during that time.
“It’s never been pointing the finger, you’re the reason why we’re losing, you’re the bad guy,” Randle said. “No, it’s, ‘We got you.’”
You get around a whole new group of guys, you just feel free and fresh. That’s what he needed and that’s what he got.Donte DiVincenzo
That helped ease his mind, taking more pressure off him. It led to this run, where he’s averaged 18 points, 6.8 rebounds and 5.2 assists on 52 percent shooting and 40 from 3-point range during the Wolves’ 17-4 finish and continuing through to this point.
“You get around a whole new group of guys, you just feel free and fresh,” DiVincenzo said. “That’s what he needed and that’s what he got. There’s no baggage or anything else. It’s just you. He’s a good teammate, a good guy, a good player. There’s nothing he had to change. He just had to be himself.”
DIVincenzo and Randle arrived in Minneapolis together in the shocking pre-training camp trade that sent Karl-Anthony Towns to New York. Immediately upon arrival, the doubts about Randle’s fit with a team that just made the conference finals months before started sprouting.
And if he had stayed in New York with higher expectations given their 2024 playoff run as Randle was out with injury, he was going to be the reason things didn’t work, no matter the outcome.
“Man, I didn’t even wanna answer my phone when the guys here started calling,” Randle said.
He was just in the Bronx the day before for a groundbreaking ceremony at the Earl Monroe New Renaissance Basketball School, where he announced he would dedicate $500 to the school for every 3-pointer he made. He’d already help raise more than $1.3 million for the school to help it open.
And then, just like that, he was moved.
It was almost a lose-lose situation.
But immediately upon showing up, Edwards sought him out with open arms.
“Ant was dope,” Randle said. “He was like, ‘I’m happy as hell you’re here,’ that’s the first thing he said. I couldn’t practice during that time, just watching him how he interacted with his teammates, talking trash, all that stuff. I was like, oh yeah, this kid is the real deal, just from a leadership perspective.”
Playing in the spotlight of New York, particularly under the circumstances of coming in as the consolation prize when Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving went crosstown to the Brooklyn Nets, was glaring.
He was an All-Star three times in his six years, and so much changed around him — the front office, Tom Thibodeau arriving in his second season and Jalen Brunson taking the mantle as team leader in 2023.
Every Randle movement was scrutinized, every slumped shoulder was analyzed.
“It ain’t fun, it ain’t fun,” Randle said. “You can’t really focus on the game, you’re focused on everything else other than the game itself. You’re living and dying with every single shot, every single turnover, every single loss. It’s not a fun way to play.
“It’s exhausting.”
He played for the Lakers as a young player, played his lone season of college basketball at Kentucky, so it’s not as if he wasn’t used to the spotlight. New York was just different, and it was probably best he got the fresh start.
“To come in with a free mind and be able to smile for his teammates, to be able to celebrate his own buckets and everybody else’s buckets,” DiVincenzo said. “It’s great to see.”
Both former Knicks have an eye on their former mates in the Eastern finals, with Randle only saying, “I’m watching,” when asked. Minnesota and New York have major work to do for that dream series to happen, and, if so, Randle’s competitive fires will stoke even more.
“I’m the type of person that my family don’t want to play Monopoly with,” he said. “I’m not trying to lose at anything, and if I do, cool, I’m coming back again. I’m coming back better.”