Around the NBA, forward OG Anunoby has garnered a reputation as a hard-nosed defender who could have some untapped potential offensively. While he isn’t going to create much offense on his own, he is a perfect glue guy, someone who makes the necessary plays to keep the offense moving in the right direction, never doing too much.
Since being acquired by the New York Knicks, Anunoby has been excellent. He has lived up to and exceeded expectations on the defensive end, helping turn around what was the worst defensive team in the NBA during a stretch in December.
Offensively, the Knicks have lost something without Immanuel Quickley and RJ Barrett, two of their short creators, but the efficiency has been on the rise. With Anunoby in the lineup, New York has produced some eye-popping numbers offensively.
NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: OG Anunoby & New York Knicks Updates
In 10 games with the Knicks, Anunoby is averaging 15 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.4 assists,1.2 steals and 1.0 blocks in 36.7 minutes per game. He has quickly become someone head coach Tom Thibodeau has the utmost trust in.
He became the first player in franchise history since Carmelo Anthony in 2013 to play 42+ minutes in three straight, non-overtime regular season games. In those three games, he logged 129 minutes of action.
Part of the reason that Anunoby is playing so many minutes is because the Knicks fall apart when he is off the court. The difference in the team’s production when he is on the court and off the court is staggering.
According to numbers pulled by Tommy Beer and shared on X, Anunoby has been on the floor for 367 minutes this month. During that time, New York has an offensive rating of 121.2 and a defensive rating of 98.9, for a total net rating of an absurd +22.3.
When he comes off the court, the numbers are just as lopsided. In 113 minutes, the team’s offensive rating plummets to 96.1 and their defensive rating skyrockets to 117.7, for a net rating of -21.6.
Despite being with the team for less than three weeks, an argument could be made that Anunoby has become the team’s most important player. The numbers would make for a strong case, as the Knicks are the best team in the NBA with him and the worst team without him.
NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: OG Anunoby & New York Knicks Updates
Through his first 10 games with the team, Anunoby has yet to record a negative plus/minus ratio in any game despite the team losing twice. His high is +35 and his low is +2. That ratio has been in the double digits eight out of 10 games and was +14 and +2 in their four-point losses.
That has resulted in Anunoby being +170 in his time with the Knicks thus far. According to Beer, that is the highest plus/minus ratio for any player in their first 10 games with a team in NBA history.
For reference on how incredible that number is, Anunoby currently ranks 25th in the NBA in total plus/minus at +207. +170 of that has come in the last 10 games with the Knicks and is lapping the rest of the league over that time.
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