In the wake of the unfortunate injury news surrounding Mitchell Robinson, the New York Knicks did get good news surrounding two-way standout OG Anunoby, as he is reportedly healthy and expected to be ready to go for the start of training camp, per ClutchPoints’ Brett Siegel.
OG Anunoby will be ready to go for the Knicks to start the season
“The good news for the Knicks is that despite some concerns surrounding their frontcourt to begin the year, there is still plenty to be excited about. Jalen Brunson is fully healthy after suffering a broken left hand in the playoffs, OG Anunoby is back and healthy after signing a new five-year deal with New York, and Mikal Bridges joins the mix as the team’s big offseason addition in their trade with the Brooklyn Nets,” Siegel wrote.
Anunoby’s first season with the Knicks was marred by injuries. He suffered an elbow injury that later required surgery that kept him out of action for over a month, and then suffered a hamstring injury during the second round of the playoffs that kept him out for the remainder of the postseason.
He tried to play through the injury in Game 7 against the Pacers but only lasted five minutes before not seeing the court again, clearly hobbled by the injury. The Knicks would go on to lose Game 7 and have their season end early, but it was still a valiant effort given the circumstances they faced with the numerous amount of injuries.
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Anunoby makes a huge difference for this Knicks team
New York will be more than happy to have Anunoby back on the floor, as he made a tremendous impact on the team the moment he was traded there from the Toronto Raptors in late December. Including the playoffs, the Knicks were 26-6 in the games Anunoby played with a 9.3 net rating. Without Anunoby, New York was 31-32 with a net rating of just 1.2.
With the Knicks officially making Anunoby a part of their long-term future by signing him to a five-year, $221.5 million contract, they will hope that he can stay on the floor as much as possible as his presence gives the team its best chance to win. New York has big title aspirations this season after they showed a lot of promise last season, and with the injuries to the frontcourt to start the year, they will be relying on Anunoby big time to get them to the promised land.
