Julius Randle enjoyed one of his best games of the season on Sunday in the New York Knicks' 117-104 road victory against the Detroit Pistons.

Randle became the first Knicks player to score at least 40 points and grab 15 rebounds or more in the same game since Patrick Ewing in 1996.

He finished with 42 points on 15-of-24 shooting to set a new season-high, while his 15 rebounds were par for the course during his red-hot start to 2023.

Since the new year began, Randle is averaging 24.5 points and 14.7 rebounds per contest, snatching at least 15 rebounds in five of the seven games to propel the Knicks to seven wins from their past eight outings.

Speaking after the game, Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau heaped praise on the man seeking to make his second All-Star team this season.

"Just great – not just the scoring, it was all around, everything," he said. "I loved how we started the game, and I thought [Randle] set the tone for us.

"In watching [the Pistons] play, getting ready to play them, I knew how well they had been playing. Sometimes that's hard to get across, but I thought Julius helped set the tone for being ready.

"Getting that lead early – we needed all of it. Whenever we needed a big bucket, [Randle] stepped up and delivered. 

"His defense – there's so many things – his rebounding is just huge. He got every big rebound down the stretch. He had tough covers, he was all over the place, on the perimeter guarding guards and everything else. I thought he was terrific."

Fellow Knicks All-Star-hopeful Jalen Brunson has also started 2023 in fine fashion, averaging 33.3 points, 6.0 assists and 5.7 rebounds in January, but he made it clear Randle is at the centre of New York's success.

"He played great, he played how Julius plays," he said. "He was aggressive, he was dominant on both sides of the ball.

"He was focused – he's been focused for a long time – and he's taken it up a notch. We just have to keep following his lead, he's doing a great job."

With the win, the Knicks moved to 25-19, and 14-8 on the road, which is tied for the second-best record away from home this season.

Thibodeau said that is no coincidence, and it all starts on the defensive end. New York boast the NBA's third-best defense (110.1 points per 100 possessions) during away games, but are 25th (113.3) at home.

"I just think it's about going in and understanding that it starts with defense, and that's what carries you," he said. "Your defense, your rebounding and taking care of the ball – so eliminate all the ways in which you beat yourself first.

"On offense, if you're willing to share and we help create rhythm for each other, we're going to be very good offensively.

"Tonight, we made it a power game. They went small, so we rebounded the ball, got to the line, and did the things we wanted to do to control the game."

The Knicks will try to make it eight wins from nine when they host the Toronto Raptors on Monday.

Michael Jordan and Patrick Ewing were in attendance for New York Yankees great Derek Jeter's Hall of Fame induction.

Jeter entered the baseball Hall of Fame on Wednesday, alongside MLB trio Larry Walker, Ted Simmons and Marvin Miller in front of basketball royalty.

NBA Hall of Famer Jordan – a six-time champion, and Ewing were in Cooperstown, New York to celebrate Jeter's illustrious career.

Jeter won five World Series titles with the Yankees, where the 47-year-old spent his entire career from 1995 to 2014.

HE finished with 3,465 hits, 1,923 runs, 260 homers and 1,311 RBIs, with a .310 average, .377 OBP and .817 OPS in 11,195 at-bats.

The 14-time All-Star also earned World Series MVP honours to go with five Gold Glove and Silver Slugger awards.

"It's been a hell of a ride," Jeter said midweek.

Over the Yankees' 13-year playoff streak from 1995 to 2007, shortstop Jeter led the team in games (1,835), runs (1,379) and hits (2,356).

The Yankees claimed four World Series during that run before adding a fifth in 2009.

"For so many years, I represented New York and the Yankee organisation in the best light possible," he said. "Now I represent you. Know that I'm here to support you, guide you, protect you.

"Most importantly, I'm here to love you. I want you to find someone that inspires you, and when the time is right, I want you to inspire others."

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."