Julius Randle named NBA's Most Improved Player

Julius Randle had reached a point after last season where his critics couldn’t be blamed if believed he’d reached his level in the NBA and maybe that was a place where his numbers exceeded his value. He heard the doubters — that he was a numbers guy, that he couldn’t get any better, and the one that stung most of all, that he was selfish.

So he set off in the COVID-19 pause in the season to work, to change his game, to get better and to prove everyone wrong. And Tuesday, with the announcement that he’d earned the KIA NBA Most Improved Award, Randle got the last word as his four-year-old son, Kyden, walked onto to the floor at the end of Tuesday’s practice at Madison Square Garden to hand him the trophy.

"We all know, especially in this market in New York, it’s a tough market to be in and everybody’s not up for the challenge," Randle said. "You know when you’re not playing well, you don’t get praise, you don’t get the benefit of the doubt. I wasn’t really looking for that, but obviously, I didn’t have the season I wanted to last year as an individual or as a team, so I wanted to come back better.

"I think the only thing that bothered me the most, whether it was true or not, just coming off as a selfish guy or a selfish teammate . . . I know me, my personality is never about that. I never want to make things about me or feel that I’m selfish or not bringing the best out of the people around me. For that, it was a learning experience. And I wanted to come back and be a better teammate and a better leader."

Randle had long put up solid numbers, but in leading the Knicks to the playoffs for the first time in eight years Randle jumped up in nearly every statistical measurement. He averaged career-highs in points (24.1), rebounds (10.2) and assists (6.0) per game, went from 27.7% shooting from three-point range to 41.1%.

In a season that caught most by surprise — for the Knicks and for Randle, he led the NBA in minutes played, sat out just one game all season, and emerged as the leader of the team on the court and in the locker room. The performance earned him the first All-Star berth of his seven-year career and could put him on the All-NBA Team.

"I guess you really don’t hear about a guy — I don’t know what the statistics are — but a guy winning most improved in his seventh year," Randle said. "So for me, it’s a pretty cool thing because I always feel like I get better every year. But to reach this type of accomplishment in my seventh year where I guess people say by that time you are who you are, you’re not going to get any better or whatever it is.

"That’s kind of that stigma, once you reach a certain point in your career. For me, I never believed in that. I know the time and effort that I put into the game. I know the daily grind and the process. And I always believe you can improve. If I feel like I’m going to stop improving, that I’m going to stop learning, then I probably shouldn't be playing the game anymore. For me, it’s always about continuing to improve. I have a plan of whenever our season is over to go into the summer and improve again."

While his attention right now is on the postseason and Wednesday’s Game Two of the opening-round playoff series against the Hawks, Randle already was wondering if anyone had ever won the award twice — a goal he was penciling in for himself.

"I mean, who knows if it’s possible," Randle said. "Why not, honestly? Really my sense of thinking in that is ‘Why can’t I be the most improved player,’ whether I get the award or not. Why can’t I have another jump, or quote-unquote, in other people’s eyes or my eyes, why can’t I be the most improved player again?

"For me, it’s about what am I willing to do, what am I willing to sacrifice and dedicate my time and efforts and come back and be a better player, and make another jump, another big jump. For me, whether I get the award or not, doesn’t really matter. Obviously, it’s never been done before. But for me, it’s about constantly looking at when the season’s over, at the end of the year, did I get better? Did I improve on the things I said I wanted to improve on? That’s what it’s about."

Knicks to pick at 19, 21, 32 and 58 in NBA Draft

The Knicks lost Game 1 to the Hawks on Sunday, but they did get a win on an off-day Tuesday when the NBA conducted the drawings to break ties and establish the NBA Draft order. The Knicks and Hawks were tied with identical 41-31 records and the Knicks got homecourt by virtue of a tiebreaker. And they earned the tiebreaker in the draft, too, thanks to the NBA drawing.

The Knicks will now select No. 19 overall. And they benefited from another tie-breaking victory Tuesday as the Dallas Mavericks’ first-round pick, which is headed to the Knicks as a piece of the Kristaps Porzingis deal, won a drawing against the Lakers, setting the pick at No. 21 overall.

So the Knicks, barring a trade, will pick at No. 19, 21, 32 (from Detroit) and 58 (from Philadelphia).

Noel status?

Nerlens Noel participated in practice and while he is listed as questionable with a sprained right ankle, it seems likely he will be in the lineup.

"Nerlens did a little more today, so he’s feeling better," Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. "We’ll see where he is tomorrow."

"He was like his normal self," Taj Gibson said. "I don’t know how to answer that question. We had a normal practice today, I didn’t see anything."

Highlight in low game

The Knicks weren’t celebrating anything after the Game 1 loss, but a moment to remember came with 5:18 remaining in the third quarter when RJ Barrett broke out ahead of the pack and threw down a monstrous dunk over Bogdan Bogdanovic that had the crowd rocking Madison Square Garden.

"Yeah, that was a special moment, something that I’ll always remember," Barrett said. "It was definitely a great feeling. The crowd went crazy. So hopefully we give them some more stuff to be crazy about."

By Steve Popper

steve.popper@newsday.com@StevePopper

Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.