During the time Jalen Brunson has been out, the New York Knicks got huge value from forward OG Anunoby. On both ends, Anunoby has been playing some of the best basketball of his career, and this is the version of him they are going to need in the playoffs.
Knicks’ OG Anunoby will make a big difference in the playoffs
Bleacher Report’s Dan Favale agrees and went as far as to say he is the second most important Knick on the team behind Brunson come playoff time.
“Both Bridges and KAT can handle more complicated shot-making duties. But a higher-volume version of Anunoby more seamlessly scales to a Brunson-led offense. OG is less inclined to hold the ball as long as Towns or dribble it as much as Bridges,” Favale wrote. “Bake in the indispensable defense, and Anunoby has bridged the offensive gap between him and his in-house competition enough to be what he is now: New York’s second most valuable player.”
Anunoby has been on another level over the past month. He is averaging 24.3 points over his last 10 games along with 1.9 steals per game. He is also shooting 50% from the floor and 38.9% from three-point range over that span.
He was a major differencemaker in the playoffs last year for the Knicks, and his absence in the second round was felt tremendously. This time, the team hopes to enter the postseason healthy, and they appear to be on track to do so.
Anunoby’s on-court impact is significant
Anunoby provides the perimeter defense that the Knicks badly need considering the lack of rim protection they have. He has made a big impact on that front this season and will be tasked with guarding the opposing team’s best player during the playoffs.
The offensive leap he has taken this year is huge for New York, as he provides them a reliable third option alongside Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns. Anunoby has taken more shots and has expanded his game beyond three-point shooting, making their overall offense a truly balanced attack.
In the playoffs, Brunson will certainly see more double teams and other forms of defensive pressure. Anunoby will make a huge difference in making teams pay for doing such, and if he continues this recent stretch into the playoffs, their odds of making a deep run go up significantly.