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On Saturday night, the New York Knicks seemed to not only lose the battle, but also the war. In addition to their 128-112 defeat to the Los Angeles Lakers, they also lost OG Anunoby to what looked like a serious-looking non-contact injury; while setting his feet in preparation to launch a three-pointer, the Knicks forward crumpled to the ground in pain, with LeBron James and Karl-Anthony Towns immediately coming to his aid.
Anunoby immediately exited the game afterwards and did not return to action in the Knicks' loss. Fans were holding their breath, and understandably so, as the Knicks can ill-afford the loss of one of their best players especially considering their lack of depth. But there appears to be an encouraging development in this regard, as Anunoby hasn't yet been ruled out for their Monday night clash against the Houston Rockets, with him being listed as questionable with a foot sprain, as per Ian Begley of SNY.
Now, considering how bad Anunoby's injury looked, expect the Knicks to still err on the side of caution, even with a tough matchup against the Rockets coming up. Anunoby also has a long history of lower-body injuries, so this should only push New York further into cautious territory.
The Knicks may be jockeying for position in the East standings, but at this point, it looks like they're pretty much locked into the three-seed in the conference barring an unforeseen turn of events. Thus, there is really no reason to risk Anunoby's health, especially when their sights are set towards playing their best basketball come June.
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How will the Knicks fill OG Anunoby's potential injury absence?
The Knicks' main issue this season has been their crippling lack of depth. This is the price they paid when they decided to bring in Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns this past offseason. Their wing depth is nearly non-existent, although it helps that Josh Hart and Bridges are two of the most positionally-versatile players in the association, paving the way for head coach Tom Thibodeau to mix and match freely.
Thibodeau relies on three main guys off the bench: Miles McBride, Precious Achiuwa, and Cameron Payne. If OG Anunoby were to miss time, the logical thing for the Knicks to do is to start McBride, since he was the one thrust into a starting role amid the team's injury woes last season. Achiuwa could then get more minutes if they decide that the team needs more size to deal with the Rockets.
