The Knicks Are Good

The Knicks are now 14-4 in their last 18 contests. That's tied for the most wins in the NBA over the past five weeks.

Final Score: Knicks 139 - Raptors 125
Record: 19-10

I began the recap of New York's victory vs. the Pelicans over the weekend by lavishing praise on Jalen Brunson and highlighting how important he was to the Knicks franchise. Well, last night at MSG against the Raps, Mr. Brunson didn't make a single FG in the first half, missing his first six shots and first three free throws.

Yet, New York still strolled into the locker room at halftime with an 18-point advantage.

On great teams, role players pick up stars when stars are struggling. And that was the case Monday night. 

The Knicks were trailing 28-27 when Cam Payne knocked down his first bucket, a pull three-pointer, on New York's penultimate possession of the first quarter. Payne then caught quarter fire to start the second frame, sinking a floater and drilling another trey on back-to-back trips. When Payne checked out midway through the quarter, the Knicks were ahead by 14 points.

At halftime, Payne has as many made field goals as Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart and Mikal Bridges COMBINED. Yet the Knicks had hung 70 points on the Raps and were cruising to an easy victory. 

On certain nights, Brunson will play like an MVP and carry his club to the finish line. But the Knicks can also destroy you even if their best player is struggling significantly. This team has so many ways to crush opponents, which gives them numerous paths to victory and makes them incredibly dangerous. 

The star last night for New York was OG Anunoby, who darn near joined Don Larsen, David Wells and David Cone by pitching the fourth perfect game in New York. OG made his first 11 shots Monday night before finally missing a 3PT attempt late in the third quarter. 

Anunoby finished with 31 points (on 13-of-15 shooting), seven rebounds, four assists, one steal, and four 3-pointers. The dominant performance quieted some concerns that had popped up around OG of late. He entered Monday mired in a slump, shooting under 37% from the field and just 21% from downtown over NY's previous six contests. Last week, he started wearing kinesiology tape on his right elbow (similar to what he sported last season), which had fans wondering if he was dealing with some pain/discomfort. 

For what it's worth, Tom Thibodeau was asked about the issue pregame and said he wasn't concerned. "Normal stuff guys go through during the course of the season," Thibs said. However, forgive fans if they don't take the coach's word for it. Seeing OG score 31 points on just 15 FG attempts is far more reassuring than words. 

As we have noted frequently over the past 12 months since his arrival in NYC, Anunoby's combination of truly elite on-ball defense and offensive efficiency (especially from downtown) makes him such an incredibly valuable contributor. 

As was noted on the MSG Broadcast last night, opponents are shooting just 38% with OG as a primary defender in December. That's the lowest DFG% in the NBA this month. And per NBA tracking data, only two players have 100+ deflections and 25+ loose balls recovered this season: Dyson Daniels and OG (the two best perimeter defenders in the NBA). Anunoby is the only player in the league with 100+ deflections, 25+ loose balls recovered and 200+ shot contests.

Sum it all up, and you get this: OG is on pace to become the first player in NBA history to average 15+ points, 2+ made three-pointers, 1.5+ steals and 1+ block per game over an entire season. 

Seems pretty good. 

However, Anunoby wasn't the only Knicks to score 30 points on just 15 attempts last night. Karl-Anthony Towns tallied 31 points on 11-of-15 FGs to go along with 10 rebounds and a team-high tying seven assists.