The Knicks added Josh Hart to the lineup on loan last February and won their first nine games, and OG Anunoby has been a highly successful addition to New York.
Anunoby scored a team-high 23 points on 9-of-12 shooting and four 3-pointers in the Knicks' 112-84 win over the Trail Blazers on Tuesday night. And, naturally, he was bombarded with loud chants. I was called “OG” many times by the Garden crowd.
The instant fan favorite has once again made a huge two-way impact, hitting an incredible plus-26 in 29 minutes during a 5-0 start with the Knicks since his late December trade from the Raptors. The overall rating increased to +111.
“If he continues at that level, of course I'll be very happy,” Tom Thibodeau said of Anunoby with a laugh before the game. “When you join in the middle of the season, you make adjustments on the fly. It's about how quickly you can adapt.
“And I told him I feel like he's playing great because of his impact when he's on the floor.”
Julius Randle added 20 points and Jalen Brunson had 12 points and seven assists, and although neither appeared in the fourth quarter, they thoroughly demolished the rebuilding Blazers (10-12). 26).
Quentin Grimes (17 points), Miles McBride (16 points) and Donte DiVincenzo (13 points) also scored in double figures, and the Knicks (22-15 overall) entered Tuesday's game with a losing record. They had a good record against the remaining teams this season with 15 wins and 1 loss. — Their only loss came against a team below .500 against the Jazz in mid-December.
“When you play those games and the year is over, you look at seeding and a lot of other things. I don't want to look at the schedule and say these games got away,” Randle said. Ta. “I want to make sure I’m running my business.”
Brunson was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week for the second time this season on Monday, only strengthening his case for his first career All-Star selection.
Brunson was ignored a year ago as Randle represented the Knicks at All-Star Weekend for the second time in his career. But the $104 million point guard set career highs in points (25.6 points per game), assists (6.5 points) and 3-point percentage (42.6 percent) through the team's first 37 games.
The Knicks entered Tuesday's game in a five-way scramble for fourth through eighth place in the East playoffs, but Thibodeau believes accumulating more wins should help Brunson's case. ing.
“He looks like this to me. [deserving]Yeah, but I think that's a byproduct of winning,” Thibodeau said. “I always say there's a lot of great players in the league, and a lot of them are deserving. I know when I vote, and of course I don't vote for my own players, but it's the last It is an important and difficult job.
“But there are some players that are really close, and usually it's the number of wins for that player that sways the close vote. So, hopefully, we continue to build and win and our players get recognized. I hope so. But in my eyes, he's certainly worth it.”
Brunson, who is currently ranked No. 6 among backcourt players in All-Star fan voting, also received a pregame endorsement from former Knick and current Blazers coach Chauncey Billups, who said: He is a five-time All-Star guard and former NBA champion with the Pistons.
“I'm a big fan of Jalen. I think he's a winner first and foremost,” Billups said. “You can talk about how crafty he is, how he can score, and how he's just a winner. He makes big plays. He makes winning plays. He's top of the league. He has great offensive power and is a true winner.”
With the Knicks leading 38-22, Brunson scored just four points in the first quarter and most of the early scoring went to Anunoby, who finished with 16 points on 4-of-5 3-point shooting. Ta.
McBride and Grimes came off the bench and each made two 3-pointers in the first half. The Knicks increased their advantage to 63-41 by intermission, scoring 14 total points.
Brunson and Randle each finished the first half with 10 points, and Anunoby added a free throw in the second to tie his previous record of 17 points against the Knicks, who led by as many as 39 points in the third.
