OG Anunoby opted out of his contract, but there is still a chance he could return to the Knicks.
Anunoby made the expected decision on Monday ahead of the deadline to opt out of the final season of his four-year, $72 million contract and become an unrestricted free agent when the market opens at 6 p.m. Sunday, according to sources.
The player option was worth $19.9 million, but the average salary on his next contract is expected to exceed that mark after Anunoby showed he can handle the pressure in New York by averaging 14.1 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.7 steals and 1.5 assists in 23 regular-season games.
The Knicks are expected to prioritize re-signing the 26-year-old Anunoby to a long-term deal, but the biggest influence will be on Anunoby, who is one of the NBA’s most versatile defenders.
The advantage for the Knicks is that they hold the Bird Rights of the 6-foot-7 forward, meaning they can offer Anunoby a bigger contract than any other team and therefore go over the salary cap.
If the Knicks were to lose Anunoby, it would be a major blunder because they knew the risks involved in trading for a potential free agent and still traded two homegrown impact players, former first-round draft picks RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley, to the Raptors in December.
Barrett is under contract through 2026-27, while Quickley is a restricted free agent.
The trade went a long way to helping the Knicks improve dramatically. With Anunoby in the lineup, shooting 39.8 percent from 3-point range and defending all five positions when needed, the Knicks went 26-6 in the regular season and playoffs.
But Anunoby’s injury history dates back to Toronto.
He missed 27 regular season games and four playoff games with an elbow injury, then made a valiant attempt to return from a hamstring injury in Game 7 of the season-ending Eastern Conference semifinals against the Pacers, only to fall short of his full potential.
Reports of the 76ers and Anunoby signing a blockbuster contract could be a negotiating ploy, but if the pairing goes through and strengthens a division rival, it will only compound the Knicks’ mistake of signing him to a non-guaranteed, half-season rental deal at the time.
Knicks fans are excited about the core of the team that made the franchise’s most impressive playoff run since 2000 and are hoping Knicks president Leon Rose adds championship-caliber players rather than cutting key players.
The exceptions are centers Isaiah Hartenstein (an unrestricted free agent) and Mitchell Robinson, who have been the subject of trade rumors as a way to relieve salary cap pressure.
—Additional reporting by Stephen Bondy
