Julius Randle is pushing to get back to the Knicks as quickly as possible, but the All-Star forward alarmingly said Wednesday that he still has not ruled out season-ending surgery on his dislocated right shoulder.
Speaking publicly for the first time since suffering the injury Jan. 27 against the Heat, Randle said Wednesday he’s feeling “better and stronger” with the aim of returning before the season ends.
But he also acknowledged more than once that surgery on his non-shooting shoulder remains a possibility.
“I mean, we’ll see. There’s still necessary steps. It’s a process to everything. I have to weigh out everything ultimately and decide from there,” Randle, who still hasn’t been cleared for contact, said at the team’s practice facility. “But right now I’m just focused on trying to avoid [surgery], obviously, and get back on the court as soon as I can.”
The three-time All-Star then was asked if he’s been told definitively by doctors that he eventually will need an operation in the offseason, even if he comes back and plays beforehand.
“I’ve heard many different opinions. Both, so we’ll see,” Randle said. “I like how I feel today as far as getting better, feeling stronger, progressing to where I need to be, as far as getting on the court.
“But I’m never somebody to say never, so ultimately I have to do what’s best for myself to have a long career, have longevity in this. The training staff has been great, getting me back healthy and feeling better, so it’s a process.”
The 29-year-old Randle jokingly added at one point that he expects to be “on the court by April 1,” before saying he was “just kidding” and that he still has no official timeframe.
Randle, who is averaging 24.0 points and 9.2 rebounds per game this season, was named to the All-Star team for the third time in four seasons, although he did not attend the weekend festivities in Indiana to continue his recuperation.
The selections of Randle and point guard Jalen Brunson marked the first time the Knicks have had two players designated as All-Stars since Carmelo Anthony and Tyson Chandler represented the organization in 2013.
Tom Thibodeau’s team had embarked on a 15-2 run after trade pickup OG Anunoby joined the lineup on Jan. 1, but he also has been sidelined since Jan. 27 with an elbow injury that required cleanup surgery.
Thibodeau said Wednesday that the injury-riddled Knicks, who dropped five of their final six games before the break, are hoping to get back some or all of Isaiah Hartenstein (Achilles), Donte DiVincenzo (hamstring) and Bojan Bogdanovic (calf) for Thursday’s road game against the 76ers after that trio practiced for a second straight day.
But it remains unclear when Randle, Anunoby and Mitchell Robinson, who underwent ankle surgery in December, will return.
“We’re just taking it step by step. I think it’s premature to say anything until you have all the information,” Thibodeau said when asked about potential surgery for Randle. “So right now he’s preparing to come back to play and he’s putting a lot into it. He looks good. He’s got a great spirit about him, he’s working out twice a day. So all things are good right now.”
Informed what Thibodeau said about his workouts, Randle smiled and replied, “Thibs told you all that? All right. It’s funny that Thibs told you that. I love it. He was blowing my phone up the whole time, All-Star, so he was doing two-a-days, too. I don’t know. I just kind of go on how I feel to be honest and I feel great. That’s as much as I can say. You guys know me. I’m going to push it as hard as I can — safely, cautiously, with the training team’s advice.”
According to Randle, he knew his shoulder “[popped] out” as soon as it happened in the game against the Heat.
Endorsing the deadline deal to import Bogdanovic and Alec Burks from the Pistons, Randle said he’s “excited” to see what the Knicks can be when healthy, even if his timetable remains uncertain.
“Every day Thibs does a good job — a great job — of having us prepared. Everybody, whether you’re getting steady minutes or not, that’s just who our team has been,” Randle said. “When guys get their opportunity they’re ready to play. I think if anything it’s brought our team closer together.
“As guys start to get healthy, we start to build that chemistry back and win games how we were — guys have been doing a great job of doing the most with what we have and holding that down while we’ve been hurt.”
