Team president Steve Mills and general manager Scott Perry had not forgotten the night Julius Randle handed it to the Knicks during the 2017-18 season. Then a Laker, Randle dropped 27 points, 12 rebounds and five assists on them in Los Angeles. They reminded Randle of it and the long flight out when they met him for the team’s free agent pitch meeting last month.



That deal happened quickly. Randle and the Knicks agreed on a three-year, $63 million contract, with a team option for the final season, shortly after free agency began. The Knicks did not get an All-Star this offseason, but they did sign a 24-year-old former lottery pick — and unlike other players with that archetype the club has acquired — on the climb. He averaged a career-best 21.4 points per game in 2018-19 with the Pelicans, along with 8.7 rebounds.



Randle might be the only free agent addition who could foreseeably become a part of the Knicks’ nucleus. He’s still young,...