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Julius Randle recently disclosed that his return to the game was delayed due to a re-injury that occurred over a month ago. This revelation led Tom Thibodeau to imply that there was indeed a setback, despite indicating otherwise just 10 days earlier. However, Thibodeau did not delve into specifics when pressed for more information.
Thibodeau explained, “Each day, Julius goes through contact during practice. It was anticipated that there would be some soreness. If the discomfort worsened slightly, the approach was to assess his condition the following day. The pivotal factor was monitoring how he felt the next day. If there was no improvement or a setback occurred after modest progress, it signified that continuing was not feasible.”
He continued, “The moment he was in the midst of action and encountered another injury, it became necessary to halt his participation. Julius is deeply committed to contributing his all to the team, which makes this situation challenging. Opting for surgery was not a decision made lightly. After thorough deliberation and evaluation of available information, the conclusion was reached that surgery was the most viable option at this point. Moving forward, our focus is to refrain from discussing this matter further and concentrate solely on our upcoming games and the goal of winning them.”
The Knicks announced Thursday that Randle will undergo season-ending surgery on his dislocated right shoulder, which was a fallback option initially but felt more like the course as his recovery dragged on for over two months.
On Thursday, Randle told Bleacher Report the reason he got surgery was, “I went through a full-contact session and re-injured my shoulder. …I felt like I was in the same state when I first dislocated it, and It’s been an uphill battle ever since.”
That was after Thibodeau said on March 25, “No setback.”
Oftentimes team executives speak about major injuries but Leon Rose hasn’t addressed independent media for over 2 1/2 years, leaving Thibodeau as the public spokesman for all topics.
The Randle interview also presented a contradiction over whether the power forward was cleared for contact.
Thibodeau reiterated Thursday that Randle never progressed past contact with pads.
Soon after publishing, the Bleacher Report story changed Randle’s direct quote from “a full-contact session” to “a full-contact session in pads.”
It was weird phrasing since contact in pads doesn’t equate to “full contact” in basketball, only football, and Randle wasn’t wearing the pads — he was hitting them.
“He was taking contact, but it was controlled contact. It was with pads, right?” Thibodeau said. “And so some days he felt better than others. And then, in the end, he had to trust his gut, that he could play and play the way that he plays, which is he’s very physical and aggressive with his shoulder. So if he can’t use his shoulder, then he can’t play — he can’t change his style of play. So once he got to the point where he felt like he’d have a good day, and then the next day it wouldn’t be as good.”
OG Anunoby’s recovery has been equally confusing.
He was originally labeled “day-to-day” with “elbow inflammation” as Thibodeau downplayed the injury.
Then the injury designation changed to “bone spur irritation” on Feb. 7. A day later, the Knicks announced Anunoby underwent elbow surgery.
When he returned, Anunoby clearly re-aggravated the elbow in his second game but Thibodeau said it was just soreness and expected.
Anunoby played one more time and has missed nine straight heading into Saturday’s contest with the Bulls. Thibodeau said the 26-year-old has returned to practice.
“OG’s doing well. He’s getting closer,” Thibodeau said. “So we’re optimistic, cautiously optimistic with that one.”
