Steve Popper: OG Anunoby impresses with his ability to cover anyone
Phoenix Suns guard Collin Gillespie battles with New York Knicks forward Og Anunoby. Credit: AP
Karl-Anthony Towns was done for the game, fouled out after only 16 minutes of trying to combat Joel Embiid. Mitchell Robinson had done his job, helping the Knicks take a lead Saturday with his energy, but with the game in the balance, the Knicks would have risked a Hack-a-Mitch strategy by the 76ers. Even Ariel Hukporti took a turn at center, giving the Knicks an unexpected boost from the little-used third-stringer.
But with the game on the line, Mike Brown looked down the bench at his assortment of options to try to combat the 7-foot Embiid and secure the win, and he chose none of the above.
Instead, he went with a lineup the Knicks had not used this season, shifting 6-8 OG Anunoby, who had been occupying himself with Paul George much of the game, to Embiid (Anunoby also was taking turns on speedy rookie VJ Edgecombe and even spent a little time on Tyrese Maxey).
Embiid finished with 38 points, 11 rebounds and five assists, but the Knicks hung on for a 112-109 win, some of it because of the defense led by Anunoby — playing alongside Josh Hart, Jalen Brunson, Landry Shamet and Deuce McBride — and some of it because of his offense.
He slammed in a one-handed follow of a missed three-pointer by Shamet with 1:55 left and the Knicks clinging to a three-point lead. He then sank a three-pointer, and after forcing Embiid into a missed shot, he found Shamet open in the corner for a three.
Afterward, the Knicks actually handed their defensive player of the game honors to Robinson. While Anunoby has hopes of moving up from the second-team All-Defensive Team honors he got last season to first team and maybe even Defensive Player of the Year, Saturday’s choice pushed Robinson into first place on the season tally, one ahead of Anunoby.
“I think [Robinson] always deserves it every night,” Anunoby said. “Any night he gets it, I love that for him . . . He does this every night. He’s a special player. No one like him in the league. His impact is felt every night in many different ways, so this is a usual night for him.”
But if Robinson was doing the usual, it was Anunoby who was doing the unusual. It’s something he’s done before, guarding the likes of Embiid or Nikola Jokic, but it doesn’t make it any less impressive.
Embiid is listed at 280 pounds, meaning Anunoby was giving away 40 pounds to a player who has made a career by pounding into defenders, something he’d already done to the Knicks’ assortment of centers.
Anunoby makes up for what he lacks in bulk with strategy, trying to use his lower-body strength to keep Embiid from shoving him under the rim and his skills to make things difficult.
“[I] just try to steal the ball,” he said. “Always trying to steal the ball. And then try to make it as physical as possible. He’s a great player. Just try to make him as uncomfortable as possible. Do the best I can.
“Just fight him, and if he turns, like if someone flashes to the middle, they’re trying to go over the top. So just communication on the back side . . . I’m always talking with someone there. So just always talking.”
“I thought it was good,” Brown said. “Again, we can’t do anything like that if you don’t have a guy like OG. OG allows us to play the basketball game in a lot of different ways. And so we were able to do it.”
Anunoby finished Saturday’s win with 23 points, seven rebounds, four assists and two steals, including one on the final play of the game. Brunson poked the ball from Embiid and Anunoby grabbed the loose ball, spoiling the 76ers’ hopes of attempting a tying three-pointer.
“OG changed the game defensively,” Brown said. “And his quick decisions with the basketball, it was beautiful to watch. But defensively, guarding their power forward, guarding Paul George and then guarding Joel Embiid. He was phenomenal defensively.”
It is that talent and diverse skill set that made the Knicks trade for Anunoby and then reward him with the richest contract ever handed out in free agency by the franchise. The Knicks hope that with the offense of Brunson and Towns and the defensive weapons up and down the roster, Anunoby can be the link between the two to let the team become what it hopes to be.
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
