​Julius Randle is back in New York with more scars than nostalgia. He knows how passionate the city is, knows how quickly praise can harden into criticism and knows how a player’s name can be thrown around in trade rumors until a phone call makes them legit.Keon Ellis is still learning another important New York lesson, one measured in smaller apartments, higher prices and an adjustment process that can start before the team’s first practice.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement“Trying to find a house is tough,” Ellis said over the weekend at Las Vegas Summer League. “It’s tough. It’s tough. So, I have to sacrifice something, some space for the prices. It’s a lot.”The Nets brought them to Brooklyn through different doors. Randle came by trade, with All-Star credentials and playoff experience. Ellis came through free agency, with defense, shooting and the credibility of an undrafted guard who had to earn every NBA minute.Brooklyn needs both kinds of help. The Nets remain young. Mikel Brown Jr., Egor Dëmin and the rest of the franchise’s prospects still have to grow before the rebuild takes off. But young players need more than minutes. They need the right vets around them and standards to follow.Randle can be one. Ellis can be another. General manager Sean Marks said Randle will raise Brooklyn’s “physical toughness and competitiveness” and bring “veteran leadership and big game experience” to its young players. Randle, speaking in Las Vegas, trimmed the assignment to its daily work.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement“Man, just really show them how to be a pro more than anything and bring that leadership aspect to it,” Randle said when asked what Marks and head coach Jordi Fernández want from him.That means teaching younger players how to attack each day, handle an NBA season’s highs and lows and stay level-headed when the schedule or losses pile up.Randle, 31, has experienced all of it. He became an All-Star with the Knicks, spent the past two seasons with the Minnesota Timberwolves and now returns to New York as a three-time All-Star and two-time All-NBA forward still capable of heavy production.Across 148 regular-season games with Minnesota, Randle averaged 20 points, 6.9 rebounds and 4.9 assists. Last season, he averaged 21.1 points, 6.7 rebounds and five assists in 79 games. In 27 combined playoff games with the Timberwolves, he averaged 19.2 points, 6.6 rebounds and four assists while helping the franchise reach the 2025 Western Conference Finals.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementRandle said he loves passing, pushing pace, throwing ahead, opening the floor, getting into the paint and spraying the ball to teammates. He wants to learn where Brooklyn’s players prefer the ball and what Fernández wants from the offense.“I can score the basketball, but I really love to pass the basketball,” Randle said.On a young team, gravity can teach. A hard drive can show a cutter when to move. A double tea