ATLANTA — OG Anunoby doesn’t need to adjust. At least not according to Tom Thibodeau.
Jalen Brunson is back. After a month-long absence due to a right ankle sprain, the Knicks’ All-Star guard is expected to return to the starting lineup on Sunday against the Phoenix Suns. And with his return comes a natural question: What happens to Anunoby’s expanded offensive role?
Over the last nine games, Anunoby has averaged 27.1 points per game — the most prolific stretch of scoring in his career — while shouldering an increased usage rate that jumped more than seven percentage points during Brunson’s absence.
But Thibodeau is adamant: that production doesn’t need to stop. Anunoby doesn’t need to change his game to fit around the team captain upon his returns.
“The notion of all that stuff — it’s white noise,” Thibodeau said after Saturday’s 121-105 win in Atlanta. “The game tells you what to do. Whose shot is it in transition? The open man. And if there’s two on somebody, whose shot is it? The open man. You have the responsibility as a primary scorer to make the right play.”
That, in essence, is Thibodeau’s basketball religion: Selfless basketball rooted in read-and-react execution.
“The team has to come first,” he continued. “What gives the team the best chance to win? That’s all anyone should be thinking about. Not who’s doing what. If you care about winning, that stuff shouldn’t matter.”
Anunoby has thrived in the vacuum of Brunson’s absence. He averaged 23.1 points in March — a career-best scoring month. His offense has come in waves: cutting backdoor, attacking closeouts, pushing the break, and hitting threes in rhythm.
Thibodeau shot down the notion Anunoby will be resigned to spacing the floor in the corners once Brunson returns to the lineup.
“He’s never been [just a floor spacer], exclusively. That notion is a bunch of garbage,” Thibodeau said. “I’ll tell you another thing: I value the corners a lot more than most people. That’s the most valuable spot on the floor.
“He’s all over the floor. That’s how he’s scoring. That’s how everyone’s scoring,” he said. “If you drive-pass-pass, who’s supposed to be in the corner? And if you’re cutting and moving without the ball — which is what you’re supposed to do — and the guy in front of you cuts, you replace in front. That’s how the game works.
“That’s a bunch of excuse-making, and that’s the way I see it.”
Anunoby’s evolution has helped the Knicks weather the storm. So has the scoring surge from Mikal Bridges, who’s averaging 20.5 points per game in Brunson’s absence.
Together, they give the Knicks options — and the ability to preserve their All-Star guard for the moments that matter most.
“‘Kal and OG being in a good rhythm offensively — that’s a good thing,” said Josh Hart. “Sometimes, especially in the first two or three quarters, [Brunson] can defer to them a little bit more, not waste so much energy offensively and give a little bit more defensively.
“And then, obviously, the fourth quarter is when it’s time to win — that’s when he has the ball in his hands.”
