OG Anunoby’s playoff run gave the Knicks a reason to rethink his place in the offense.
For most of last season, New York leaned on him to handle the toughest defensive job on the floor. In the playoffs, though, Anunoby became more than the stopper. He started producing points like a player the Knicks could trust when the offense bogged down, and that shift should matter heading into training camp.
The numbers from the title run back that up. Anunoby averaged 20.1 points and 6.3 rebounds, while adding 1.5 steals per game and shooting 48.9 percent from three.
Those are playoff figures, not a promise that he’ll suddenly give New York 20 points every night across 82 games. Even so, they’re enough to justify a bigger offensive role than whatever is left after Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns get theirs.
That doesn’t mean the Knicks need to build the whole attack around him. Anunoby is at his best when he can work within the flow of the game - spotting up for a catch-and-shoot three, slicing in for a cut, or attacking a mismatch without dribbling away a possession.
Mike Brown can use that without overcomplicating things. He can simply look for ways to get Anunoby involved earlier in quarters, especially when defenses overload Brunson.
His work against Cleveland only strengthened the argument. That series helped push the Knicks through the East, and while the defense was expected, the scoring changed the way opponents had to account for him.
Brunson still drives everything for New York, and Towns is going to get his touches too. But there’s room for the Knicks to stop treating Anunoby like a corner option and start giving him a few more designed chances.
There is a real question attached to all of this: can he keep that playoff efficiency if teams game-plan for a larger role? The answer isn’t clear. He’s already carrying a heavy defensive load, and asking for too much on offense would be a mistake.
Still, it’s a swing worth taking. Brown now has proof that Anunoby can handle more. The Knicks should find out how much more he can give.
In Other News...
Sean Marks Faces Growing Nets Pressure For A Reason Fans Know
As training camp chatter turns into real roster decisions, the Knicks are keeping an eye on more than just Jalen Brunsons wrist. The back end of the roster is still in play, and the 14th spot has become one of those small but meaningful questions that can shape how the team fills out around its core. There is also a parallel issue hanging over second-round pick Tyler Nickel, whose path to New York is tied to an NCAA eligibility ruling that could alter how and when he enters the NBA picture.
If the Knicks want to bring Nickel in on a standard deal, it would not be as simple as signing and filing the paperwork. A move like that would likely force the front office into a trade conversation, with Miles McBride and Pacome Dadiet emerging as the names most worth watching. For a team trying to balance present depth with long-term flexibility, that kind of domino effect is exactly the sort of roster wrinkle that can linger well past camp. [Read more 🡒]
Knicks Are Counting On Andre Drummond For One Crucial Frontcourt Job
Andre Drummond is the kind of veteran addition that tells you exactly what a team thinks it needs. After Mitchell Robinson left for Boston, the Knicks moved quickly to bring in Drummond on a one-year deal, adding another big body to the frontcourt and another player who can steady a second unit. It is not a like-for-like replacement, and New York is not asking him to be one.
Instead, the Knicks are counting on Drummond to do the sturdier, more defined work that still matters over the course of a season. His value is supposed to come from rebounding, interior defense and dependable minutes off the bench, giving the roster a different kind of presence behind its starters. The challenge is clear enough: New York wants his game to complement what it already has, even as the departure in the middle leaves a spot that cannot truly be filled by one player alone. [Read more 🡒]
Knicks Face A Tough Karl-Anthony Towns Decision Much Sooner Than Expected
The Knicks have spent the offseason weighing how far they want to go to keep Karl-Anthony Towns in New York long term, and the early answer is that this may not be a quick decision. Extension talks have stalled, even though the team has shown interest in keeping him around, and the front office is trying to balance that desire against the realities of a tight salary cap and the broader risk profile that comes with a star in his 30s and a history of injuries.
Towns is already set to make $57 million next season, with a $61 million player option waiting for 2027-28, and the kind of extension available to him could reach four years and $277 million. For the Knicks, the question is no longer just whether Towns fits on the roster, but how much certainty they want to buy now versus how much flexibility they need to preserve later. [Read more 🡒]