In 24 hours, the National Basketball League has just welcomed two veterans of the European circuit. After Mike Efevberha, recruited by Quimper, Jerome Randle (1.75 m, 34 years old) has officially returned to France. Professional since 2010, the native of Chicago will discover the 22nd club of his career on the side of Boulogne-Levallois. He signed on as a medical freelancer for David Michineau, who suffered a relapse last week from his injury suffered against Portugal on February 24. Hit in the thigh, the Guadeloupe has a minimum of six weeks off.
Star in NCAA or Australia
During his winding journey, from the G-League to Oceania via the Middle East and Europe, the new recruit of the Metropolitans 92 has already made a stop in France. It was in 2017, in Limoges, for two frustrating months (10.1 points at 42% and 4 assists in 14 games), where he felt locked into Dusko Vujosevic’s system, just after being elected MVP of the Australian Championship.
With Limoges, Jerome Randle had failed to “destroy the Pro A”
(photo: Sebastien Grasset)
University star, elected MVP of the famous Pac-12 conference (like Gary Payton, Jason Kidd, Jason Terry, Brandon Roy, Kevin Love, James Harden or DeAndre Ayton), the former California University student never managed to set foot in the NBA but has accumulated honors around the world. A reputation that is well established in Australia, therefore, but also in Lithuania, where he had led Zalgiris to the 18th national title in its history by being elected MVP of the final, in Turkey, where he participated in the All -Star Game during his rookie season in 2010/11, or in Ukraine, for which he has defended the colors of the selection since EuroBasket 2015. The neo-Parisian is a loyal man since he continues to answer the call of the flag: thus, he was still present during the last international window and had been one of the best Ukrainians in Spain on February 24 (21 points at 9/17, 4 rebounds and 5 assists), in the dramatic context that the ‘we know.
February 24, 2022, Ukrainian colors: Jerome Randle’s last game
(photo : FIBA)
A revenge to be taken in France
After this evening in Cordoba, Jerome Randle left to play for a month in Iran but did not allow Mahram to pass the milestone of the quarter-finals (22.2 points at 51% and 5.2 assists in 6 games). Before the Russian invasion, he formed an interesting duo with Michael Stockton at Budivelnyk kyiv (16.9 points at 48% and 5.1 assists). Promising statistics which tend to prove that he has fully recovered from the rupture of the cruciate ligaments suffered in February 2020, barely two days after signing for Fuenlabrada. Renowned for its explosiveness and its devastating first step during its heyday, what will it be now? But the American-Ukrainian has at least one revenge to take on the French championship: expected like the messiah by Limoges in 2017, like what Pooh Jeter had been able to do two years earlier, he had never succeeded to join the collective of the CSP. The pressure will be much lower in Boulogne-Levallois, which was already doing very well without him: but as a relay for potential MVP Will Cummings, the former Limougeaud could do the greatest good for Vincent Collet’s group and prove to be an excellent pickaxe in the race for first place.
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