#Knicks’ Julius Randle wins Most Improved Player award

Julius Randle has won the NBA’s Most Improved Player award, according to reports Tuesday, after an All-Star campaign that led the Knicks to their first playoff berth since 2013.

The power forward averaged 24.1 points, 10.2 rebounds and six assists per game, while shooting 41 percent from downtown in 2021. Last season, Randle averaged 19.5 points, 9.7 rebounds and 3.1 assists, while shooting 28 percent from three-point range.

Randle, who earned his first All-Star nod this season, was drafted seventh-overall by the Lakers in 2014 before signing a three-year, $63 million contract with the Knicks in 2019.

The Detroit Pistons’ Jerami Grant and Denver Nuggets’ Michael Porter Jr. were the other two finalists for the award, which was voted on by members of the media.