He was well on his way to shattering his career record in the playoffs. But with four minutes left in the third quarter, OG Anunoby had to leave his playing partners to go to the locker room and not return.
On a poorly launched counter-attack, the Knicks winger, carried away in his momentum, was not able to finish. But above all he finished his race badly and was injured. He was seen holding the back of his left thigh, before limping off the field.
“ I’m not sure of his condition. I haven’t spoken to the medical team yet », says Tom Thibodeau, also seduced by the performance of his player: “ I found him very aggressive. I think he played very well at the end of Game 1 with his defensive activity. He picked up where he left off, that was huge for us, that got us off to a good start. »
The former Raptors player had the good idea to explode offensively while Jalen Brunson also had to join the locker room, temporarily in his case, due to a foot injury. Already untenable in the first quarter in his attacks from the circle, the London native continued his efforts in the second, combining well with Isaiah Hartenstein in particular.
A nice offensive variety
With on arrival, 28 points (10/19 on shots including 4/7 from distance), his record in the playoffs therefore and double his average in these final phases, 4 rebounds and 3 assists. “ It was huge. The way he scored, it was a bit of everything. He ran, made 3-point baskets, he was good in transition, he attacked the circle, he was decisive. Only positive », retains his coach.
The latter, deprived of his lucky charm (only 5 defeats with the Knicks, for 26 victories!) as well as Mitchell Robinson, had to mobilize Precious Achiuwa to finish the match. Hardly used since the start of the playoffs, the other rookie from the Raptors responded with 8 points and 5 rebounds in 28 minutes.
“ I don’t know what it is (from Anunoby) at present. It’s between him, the doctor and the team. But there is still the mentality of taking over in this team. We have a group of winners who will contribute in every way possible “, displays Precious Achiuwa.
Rightly so, because despite a cascade of injuries (Julius Randle, Bojan Bogdanovic, etc.), the Knicks are two rounds from the conference final.
| 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 | 0.8 | 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 |
| Total | 418 | 29 | 47.4 | 37.6 | 74.5 | 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.
