With one center ruled out with a mysterious illness and another on the bench due to a minutes restriction, Precious looked to make the biggest play in the biggest moment of Sunday’s 120-119 OT win over the Bulls.・Achiuwa was needed.
Mitchell Robinson, who was just two weeks away from returning from a 50-game layoff due to ankle surgery, sat out the second half because he was “just told he couldn’t play,” according to Tom Thibodeau. It is said that it was excluded from
Isaiah Hartenstein, who has been managing Achilles tendon pain all season, logged 31 minutes of regulation time, his second most since Feb. 6, and came off the bench.
As a result, Achiuwa, who had been forgotten in the rotation since Robinson’s return, played all but two seconds in overtime.
He scored four points, including a putback dunk with a minute left for a four-point lead, and stopped DeMar DeRozan on Chicago’s final possession.
DeRozan’s potential winning shot was a mid-range shot that went over Achiuwa’s outstretched arm and bounced off the rim with about three seconds left.
The Knicks, the No. 2 seed in the East, ended their season with a win, posting a record of 50 wins and 32 losses.
“He’s trying to get to the free-throw line, looking for every prickly touch to call a foul,” Achiuwa said. “So it was just about getting him to take tough shots, contested two shots, even though that’s his specialty.
“We’re trying to make it as strict as possible.”
Achiuwa and DeRozan were substituted after Bulls center Nikola Vucevic set a screen on primary defender OG Anunoby.
Achiuwa was left on the island to protect Chicago’s best scorer and held Chicago in check.
“[Achiuwa in OT] It was huge, it was huge,” Tom Thibodeau said. “Vucevic is a burden to have to deal with. And if the team gets smaller, what Precious provides is the ability to switch. So I think that’s important for us as well.”
Achiuwa was a mainstay in the lineup in February and early March, but has been more of an afterthought as of late and was considered on the fringe of the rotation for the playoffs.
But that also depends on Robinson’s presence or absence.
Two days after logging 25 minutes, his best since ankle surgery, Robinson went through the second half without scoring seven points.
“It’s probably preventative. So we’ll see,” Thibodeau said. “He was fast during the game. He just said he wasn’t going to be available in the second half. So go from there.”
Robinson admitted he has struggled with conditioning and rhythm since returning from ankle surgery.
He missed the March 31st game due to ankle pain.
If the Knicks play the Sixers in the first round, they will likely have to deal with the burden of having reigning MVP Joel Embiid under center.
As a member of the Raptors, Achiuwa faced Embiid in the 2022 playoff opener, which Philadelphia won in six games.
The Knicks will play Game 1 on Saturday against the winner of Wednesday’s play-in game between the No. 7 Sixers and No. 8 Heat.
“He’s a hell of a player,” Achiuwa said of Embiid.
