When NBA star Julius Randle talks about home, his eyes light up. It’s not just about where he grew up—it’s about how that place shaped him, and how he’s watched it transform over the years.

“By the time I was 11, my mom moved us out,” Randle recalls. The family settled in McKinney, Texas, a area that back then was wide-open and wild. “We lived way out, about 45 minutes out in McKinney, where there was nothing. It was just straight land. An undeveloped area. It was great.”

That first house marked a new chapter for the Randle family—a fresh start in a place that felt like the frontier. For a young athlete with big dreams, that open space wasn’t emptiness; it was possibility.

“I see how the area developed. That was dope about it,” Randle says, reflecting on the transformation. “Luckily, I live there. I grew up there. So, I know the area and I know what’s up-and-coming. I was able to get ahead of it.”

Today, that same stretch of land is unrecognizable. “It’s crazy because now in that area they just announced a whole 120-acre shopping center, hospital, everything. The area is building up.”

For Randle, McKinney isn’t just a hometown—it’s a living reminder of growth, resilience, and the power of putting down roots. And in the offseason, there’s no place he’d rather be than back where it all began, surrounded by family and friends.