by In an offseason that featured several surprising blockbuster transactions, the Knicks re-signed OG Anunoby to a five-year, $213 million contract was understandably buried under the covers. It was almost a formality, as New York had traded two homegrown talents to sign him the year before. And while the price was debated given his injury history and offensive limitations, his defensive impact and reliable three-point shot made him such a good fit that the deal was almost a given.
Still, taking home the second-highest salary on a competitive team — more than $40 million per year — comes with expectations. And while Anunoby’s defense lived up to the hype and more, this recent dip in shooting performance has held him back on offense as of late.
Is this an everyday seasonality or something of real concern?
Anunoby opened the season with flying colors, averaging 19.1 points on 52.4 percent shooting from the field and 42.2 percent in three over 17 games, capped by a career-high 40 points against the Denver Nuggets. Since then, in nine games, he has averaged 13 a night, shooting 38 percent from the field and 23.6 percent from downtown, with four single-digit goals, something he hadn’t done since opening night.
His shooting diet hasn’t changed much beyond the arc – he mostly gets open catch-and-shoot looks, he just doesn’t score as well as he used to. Until the Denver game, Anunoby was well over 40 percent on his spot-up attempts and has since been below 30 percent even on completely open attempts.
Break down his deep looks by location and there have been some changes. He relied heavily on the aforementioned break threes during his hot streak and has split his attempts more evenly since then. Still, his shooting percentages from everywhere have dropped dramatically, so it probably has nothing to do with geography.
This drop also appears below the arch. Anunoby shot 70.6 percent from beyond the arc and 41.7 percent from mid-range through the Nuggets game, compared to 60.8 percent or a stunning 0-5 since then.
This likely points to something bigger impacting his overall offense. He hasn’t lost any chance or rhythm as his volume is consistent in both sections, but he may have lost a step due to fatigue.
Anunoby is averaging a career-high 36.8 minutes per contest – he has never missed a game – and is third in the league in minutes played. These are extremely active minutes: He’s eighth in the league in deflections per game, second in contested three-point attempts, top 10 in defensive miles run and 11th in stocks (steals and blocks).
As the Knicks’ primary defender, Anunoby is often tasked with the toughest tasks while also being the primary resource in filling gaps created by his teammates. Build a competitor Jalen Brunson And Karl Anthony cities We always wanted to put an extra defensive burden on their role players, but it was more of a team fight than expected and Anunoby seems to be the one suffering from trying to fight through.
As his teammates step up their defensive efforts and Anunoby weathers this crisis, there’s little reason to believe the situation won’t change. Anunoby has had similar losing streaks in previous seasons – seven games with a 23.1 percent three-point rate last December, eight games with a 21.1 percent shooting rate in November 2022.
Meanwhile, his defense was supernatural. And when his offense took off, it was the most dynamic package he’s shown in his entire career, as close as that Kawhi Leonard Comparisons have ever looked. This Knicks team and its back-and-forth has tested the patience of their fans this early in the season. But if there’s one thing they can trust, it’s that Anunoby will bounce back from this.
