Knicks agree to deal with Julius Randle

Randle signs two-year deal with team option

7/1/2019, 12:01 AM

Hours after losing out on the Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving sweepstakes, the Knicks made their first big splash in free agency.

New York agreed to a three-year, $63 million contract with free-agent forward Julius Randle, SNY's Ian Begley confirmed.

The first two years of the contract are guaranteed, while the third year is a team option, according to Begley.

 

The 24-year-old Randle averaged a career-high 21.4 points in 73 games with the New Orleans Pelicans last year. In five years since the Lakers drafted him seventh overall, the 6-foot-9, 250-pound Randle has averaged 15.4 points and 8.9 rebounds in 311 career games.

The Knicks, who entered free agency with approximately $70 million in salary cap space, met with Randle in Los Angeles a short while after Durant and Irving both announced they reached four-year near-max deals with the Brooklyn Nets.

The Knicks, who remain interested in two-time NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard, also agreed to deals with Bobby Portis and Taj Gibson, and have also expressed interest in Wayne Ellington, Begley reports.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski was first to report Randle's agreement.

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