Julius Randle is proud of the way he has followed Kobe Bryant's example with his work ethic to help lead the New York Knicks to fourth in the Eastern Conference.
The Knicks beat the Toronto Raptors 120-103 on Saturday to stretch their winning run to nine in a row.
The team have had seven straight losing seasons, missing the playoffs every year since 2012-13, but are now 34-27 and firmly back in contention to make the postseason.
As all season, Randle was the Knicks' standout performer against the Raptors, scoring 31 points to improve his average for the year to 24.0. He also has 10.5 rebounds and 6.0 assists per game in 2020-21.
This form earned All-Star recognition and could yet see Randle selected to an All-NBA team.
Such a turnaround could hardly have been expected for a player who had averaged 16.1 points per game for his career since he was selected seventh overall in 2014 by Bryant's Los Angeles Lakers.
The Lakers superstar's late-career industry rubbed off on Randle, though, with the forward improving this year under Tom Thibodeau, who compared Randle to Knicks great Patrick Ewing.
"That's amazing," Randle said of Thibodeau's comments. "I've actually asked him to talk about that before. He gave me an insight because he saw it first-hand.
"I'm proud of myself for my work ethic. The greats have done it before.
"The guy that I idolised the most and looked up to - which is Kobe - his work ethic was top notch. Nobody was better at putting the time in.
"So, like I say, I'm proud of myself for my work ethic in terms of how I prepare myself to get ready for a season, how I prepare myself to get ready for games."
Thibodeau said: "It always starts with your best players. If they work like that, it sets the tone for the team.
"[Randle] is relentless. It's not an accident that he's having the type of season that he’s having.
"His commitment, I could see it from the first day I met him, just looking at the type of conditioning he had, how committed he was to turning this thing around.
"I can recall back in the '90s, when I first arrived here as an assistant, the thing that blew me away was Patrick Ewing, every morning in the offseason, he was the first guy in the building, worked like crazy, got himself ready, and the rest of the team did the same.
"I think that's leadership. It's not what you say, it's what you do. When you see an example like that, it gives you confidence and gives the team confidence."
This is now the Knicks' longest sequence of wins since 13 straight across March and April 2013, yet Randle is not content.
"We're peaking, but we can still get a lot better," he said.
"Offensively we're playing well, but defensively, for a full 48 minutes, I feel like we can be a lot better."
Villarreal 4-4 Real Madrid: LaLiga's top scorer Sorloth scores four in thrilling comeback
Villarreal forward Alexander Sorloth struck four times in 17 minutes to help his side fight back and snatch a 4-4 home draw against LaLiga champions Real Madrid on Sunday.
Madrid opened the scoring in the 14th minute when Turkey youngster Arda Guler slotted home a low strike off a Brahim Diaz pass before Joselu doubled the lead with a close-range header on the half-hour mark.
Sorloth pulled one back for Villarreal with a towering header in the 39th minute, but Lucas Vazquez restored Madrid's two-goal advantage a minute later, before Guler made it 4-1 in the final seconds of the first half.
But the hosts rallied after the break, with Sorloth scoring three goals in eight minutes, between the 48th and 56th minutes, as he reached 23 league goals this season to take LaLiga's Golden Boot award.
A second-half collapse will frustrate Carlo Ancelotti in the final league game of the season, with a Champions League final to come against Borussia Dortmund on June 1, but Madrid still achieved another record here.
Los Blancos surpassed the best unbeaten run in their entire LaLiga history after making it 31 games undefeated, eclipsing the previous record set between May 1988 and April 1989 with Leo Beenhakker as coach.
Data Debrief: Shot-heavy Sorloth delivers
Sorloth attempted nine shots in this game, the joint-highest total for a player in LaLiga this season, but those efforts paid dividends for his eye-catching four-goal haul.
He had played five games against Madrid and failed to score in all of them before this, against no other opponent has he played more games without scoring in the competition, but delivered emphatically here.
Edwards salutes 'special club' Luton after relegation confirmed
Rob Edwards paid tribute to "special club" Luton Town after the Hatters' relegation from the Premier League was confirmed on the final day.
Luton's brief but eventful stint in the top flight came to an end following a 4-2 defeat by Fulham at Kenilworth Road, with Edwards' side finishing 18th and six points adrift of 17th-place Nottingham Forest.
Last-day survival was always going to be a big ask for the Hatters, who needed a victory and an ambitious 12-goal swing to stand any chance of usurping Forest.
Luton have gained many new admirers with their tally of 52 goals the second-most by a side during a 20-team Premier League season in which they were relegated - after Blackpool's 55 in 2010-11.
However, a leaky defence proved to be their undoing as they conceded 85 times - their highest tally in a top-flight campaign.
Nevertheless, Edwards saluted the club's supporters, and believes his side have a solid foundation to build on next season in their quest for an immediate return from the Championship.
"We're a special club, we've got unique support. We've had that all season long," he told Match of the Day. "Everyone that's travelled has shown their best. We've given our best this year, and ultimately we've just come up short.
"If one game could almost tell a season's story, that would be today - full of endeavour, some really good quality at times as well, but a little bit too fragile.
"We've scored a lot of goals this year. We've been good to watch, we've been involved in loads of great games, but we've conceded too many. That balance is something that we've got to try to address, and we know where we need to keep improving.
"We have changed and evolved so much. There is a lot of good stuff we can take to attack the Championship next season. We work hard, we give absolutely everything. We just have to be us, go and be Luton."
'Closer to leaving than staying' – Guardiola unsure on Man City future after title glory
Pep Guardiola says there is a greater chance of him leaving Manchester City than staying, despite the Spaniard wanting to continue in charge after Sunday's Premier League title triumph.
City manager Guardiola offered a cryptic description over his future after his side lifted their fourth successive top-flight trophy following the 3-1 victory over West Ham at Etihad Stadium.
That success marked Guardiola's sixth Premier League title, with only Alex Ferguson (13) managing more in the competition's history, though speculation persists over his future.
When pressed on his plans by Sky Sports after the title celebrations, Guardiola said: "The reality is I am closer to leaving than staying.
"We have talked with the club – my feeling is that I want to stay now. I will stay next season and during the season we will talk, but eight or nine years – we will see."
City ended the season after going 35 matches unbeaten in all competitions (W29 D6), the longest run ever by a Premier League team, as they broke further records with this triumph.
Guardiola's side are the first team in English top-flight history to win the title in four consecutive seasons, having won the league in 2020-21, 2021-22, 2022-23 and 2023-24.
Yet the former Barcelona boss says credit must be shared for City's title-winning heroics.
"A lot of work, I'm not saying I'm a bad manager but I have incredible support from the club," he added.
"We have this work ethic, everyone does their job and every department is so important. This is the truth and the reality."
City once again pipped Arsenal, whose final-day victory over Everton proved meaningless, to the title – just as they did last season in a battle with Mikel Arteta's side.
Guardiola warned Arsenal are a side on an upward trajectory, though, as Arteta continues to excite with his youthful Gunners.
"For Arsenal to push us to another level – before it was Liverpool – and the last two seasons it's been Arsenal," Guardiola continued.
"This one has been incredible. We get the message, we know they will be there for many years.
"They have a young manager with big talent – they sent us a message that you have to be careful for the next few years.
"When I moved here if someone had said I would win six leagues in seven seasons I would say you're insane – no way.
"All these players for Manchester United and Liverpool and Chelsea, all these teams. Now is our period, we are part of that."
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