If Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns, even Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart, have been talked about a lot at new York since the resumption, it has not been the same for OG Anunoby. However, this one is particularly valuable for this New York team. Particularly thanks to its defensive contribution.
You only have to look at the 27-year-old's performance on Friday night against Milwaukee to see it. Because, sent on a mission on Giannis Antetokounmpo, he did not hesitate to contain the double MVP to “only” 24 points and 11/21 shooting, when we know that before this match he averaged 31 points and 62 % address…
“It seems so easy and requires little effort to see him do that…”
“ He's a great player, so we have to make his life as difficult as possible » detailed the winger of Knicks coming out of victory. “ You know he's going to score his points, so you just have to try to limit his contribution to scoring and prevent him from being as comfortable as usual. »
A defensive performance such that OG Anunoby's teammates were impressed.
“ He was good and that's all we can ask of him »reacted for example Josh Hart. “ Giannis is a great player, so being able to play physical against him and give him complicated shots is huge. »
“ It seems so easy and requires little effort to see him do that… » added Jalen Brunson for his part. “ This is his pure talent: the way he defends on the ball and the way he plays without the ball. He's a phenomenal part of our team, he's been great since he arrived here. »
“ He's just one of the best defenders I've seen. »
Hero of the evening, Karl-Anthony Towns could also only be delighted with what OG Anunoby achieved, who even did the job when he had to defend on Damian Lillard, although he was faster.
“ He is special, so special in fact, with everything he brings to defense. I've been in this league for ten years now and I haven't known many players like OG. He's just one of the best defenders I've seen, and I played with Rudy Gobert… He's special, I can't say more. »
Present with the Knicks for almost a year, and for the next four years, OG Anunoby continues to impress on the defensive level and, when he is there, it is immediately felt in the team's results. Both in the regular season (24-7 when he plays; 13-15 otherwise) and in the playoffs (6-2 when he plays more than 5 minutes; 1-4 when this is not the case).
“ You can't measure all the little things he does on every possession » appreciated Tom Thibodeau, his coach. “ He defends on the opponent's main ball carrier the entire game and he doesn't stop. That says a lot about him. If we continue like this and everyone gets involved in defending, we can be good. We are small, so we have to play hard and go for the rebound. If we do this collectively, good things can happen for us. »
| OG Anunoby | Percentage | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | MJ | Min | Shots | 3pts | L.F. | Off | Def | Early | Pd | Party | Int | Bp | Ct | Pts |
| 2017-18 | TOR | 74 | 20 | 47.1 | 37.1 | 62.9 | 0.6 | 1.9 | 2.5 | 0.7 | 1.8 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 5.9 |
| 2018-19 | TOR | 67 | 20 | 45.3 | 33.2 | 58.1 | 0.9 | 2.1 | 2.9 | 0.7 | 2.1 | 0.7 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 7.0 |
| 2019-20 | TOR | 69 | 30 | 50.5 | 39.0 | 70.6 | 1.2 | 4.1 | 5.3 | 1.6 | 2.4 | 1.4 | 1.1 | 0.7 | 10.6 |
| 2020-21 | TOR | 43 | 33 | 48.0 | 39.8 | 78.4 | 1.3 | 4.3 | 5.5 | 2.2 | 2.7 | 1.5 | 1.7 | 0.7 | 15.9 |
| 2021-22 | TOR | 48 | 36 | 44.3 | 36.3 | 75.4 | 1.5 | 4.0 | 5.5 | 2.6 | 2.7 | 1.5 | 1.7 | 0.5 | 17.1 |
| 2022-23 | TOR | 67 | 36 | 47.6 | 38.7 | 83.8 | 1.4 | 3.5 | 5.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 1.9 | 2.0 | 0.7 | 16.8 |
| 2023-24 * | All Teams | 50 | 34 | 48.9 | 38.2 | 75.3 | 0.9 | 3.2 | 4.2 | 2.1 | 2.4 | 1.4 | 1.6 | 0.7 | 14.7 |
| 2023-24 * | TOR | 27 | 33 | 48.9 | 37.4 | 71.7 | 0.9 | 3.0 | 3.9 | 2.7 | 2.3 | 1.0 | 1.6 | 0.5 | 15.1 |
| 2023-24 * | NYK | 23 | 35 | 48.8 | 39.4 | 79.1 | 1.0 | 3.4 | 4.4 | 1.5 | 2.5 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.0 | 14.1 |
| 2024-25 | NYK | 8 | 36 | 44.6 | 37.8 | 80.0 | 0.6 | 3.9 | 4.5 | 2.8 | 2.2 | 1.6 | 1.0 | 0.6 | 14.4 |
| Total | 426 | 29 | 47.3 | 37.6 | 74.7 | 1.1 | 3.2 | 4.3 | 1.6 | 2.4 | 1.3 | 1.3 | 0.5 | 12.0 | |
How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive rebound; Tot = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; Pts = Points.
