There’s a new standard by which to measure OG Anunoby’s contract. In other words, hundreds of millions of dollars isn’t what it used to be.
The backdrop is the new contract that Immanuel Quickley, a point guard who is a household name to any Knicks fan, agreed to on Friday. He’ll make $175 million over five years with the Toronto Raptors, according to a league source. That’s a lot of money for a guy whose greatest accomplishment in the NBA was being a runner-up for Sixth Man of the Year, with all due respect to his spectacular 38-point performance against the Celtics in 2023.
Why does this concern Anunoby?
The Knicks traded Quickley for Anunoby. One of the reasons they traded Quickley was because they didn’t want to pay him too much money. The Knicks had a chance to make a long-term deal before last season, but the October deadline passed without an agreement being reached. At the time, there were rumors that Quickley wanted $125 million. He risked himself and the NBA’s escalating salary situation and received another $50 million.
Meanwhile, Anunoby recently agreed to a lucrative five-year, $213 million contract, a sum that seems daunting given Anunoby’s injury history and the numerous ailments that kept him off the court for several key games, including the Raptors’ 2019 championship.
It’s unclear whether Anunoby’s new deal will include options or game-count provisions — details likely won’t be available until the deal is official — but the initial shock of Anunoby’s signing, the biggest in Knicks history, is softened by the comparisons.
First, there’s the combined contracts of Anunoby, Quickley and RJ Barrett, the two players traded for him. Their combined contracts are worth $282 million. As proven after the trade, Anunoby is a better fit for the Knicks than either Quickley or Barrett, especially with Jalen Brunson. And then there’s this crazy fact: Spotrac estimates Anunoby’s average salary is the 28th highest in the NBA, just below Fred VanVleet.
Salary expectations need to be recalibrated. Did the Knicks overpay a role player? Yes. Did they overpay excessively? Not in this market. Did the Knicks have to re-sign him? Sure. Is it a big risk? Sure, twice that.
Injuries are scary. Anunoby hasn’t played a 70-game season since his rookie year in 2017-18; he played about 20 with the Knicks before having surgery. There’s a good chance Anunoby is on a terrible contract in his final year as a 33-year-old. That’s a lot of baggage.
But the Knicks are in no position to play with fear. Caution has always been Leon Rose’s philosophy, but he changed course this summer because playing the Celtics requires a gamble.
The big one was the trade for Mikal Bridges, which, as I’ve written about before, was also a gamble on Jalen Brunson’s star power, and Andre Iguodala, who knows a thing or two about the Warriors’ backcourt stars, likes the matchup.
“I think Mikal is the perfect fit alongside Jalen Brunson to help Jalen become Jalen,” Iguodala said on Carl Melo Anthony’s “7PM in Brooklyn” podcast. “They complement each other so, so well. I’ve talked about this before, I thought Mikal Bridges was the best talent in New York City. Jalen has obviously proven me wrong. His IQ is on another level, the way he plays the game. It’s great, but everyone’s been asking how far the Knicks can go with this team. I think Mikal is going to bring that perfect balance to Jalen.”
The other big gamble is the money they’ll give to injury-prone, versatile player Anunoby, a big contract that’s risky, but a look at NBA cap sheets shows it’s also the going rate.
