The New York Knicks surprised many people when they traded for Mikal Bridges, reuniting him with his former Villanova University teammates Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, and Donte DiVincenzo. There are plenty of reasons to be excited about the deal’s aftermath, given that he seems to be the perfect fit for the Knicks.
However, the team still has some decisions to make because the acquisition of Bridges and re-signing OG Anunoby on a megadeal could leave star Julius Randle as the odd man out. The bruising power forward has various options, including fighting for a spot in the starting lineup, forcing a trade, and accepting a sixth-man role. While most of his alternatives don’t look that bad, Andre Iguodala warned Randle.
” Once you’re put in a box at a certain point in your career, you can’t get outside the box,” Iguodala said on Carmelo Anthony’s podcast. “If you got a guy like Julius Randle who’s still in his prime and can put up 22-10, he can still get his numbers, he’s a bull in a china shop, he is who he is, great player, once he starts to take a lesser role, now he in that box. His earning potential is half. … I got punished for doing what’s best for the team financially.”