Knicks guard Derrick Rose, left, and forward Julius Randle, right, sit on the bench in the final minutes of a loss to the Hawks in Game 4 of an NBA first-round playoff series Sunday in Atlanta. Credit: AP/Curtis Compton
Was it only five days ago that Julius Randle was the most celebrated basketball star in New York?
Randle had accomplished the inconceivable, leading a Knicks team that went 21-45 last season to a 41-31 record and their first playoff appearance in eight years. He did it by playing with grit and determination and a belief that both he and the Knicks could be much better than anyone else thought they could be.