Knicks Bringing Back Anunoby as Title Odds Continue to Climb
Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images Pictured: OG Anunoby of the New York Knicks
The New York Knicks made waves late Tuesday night, sending a massive package including four unprotected first-round picks to the Brooklyn Nets for Mikal Bridges.
Everyone wondered what that meant for the Knicks’ own pending free agents, including whether they’d be able to bring back OG Anunoby.
The answer is yes as reports poured in shortly before this year’s NBA Draft got underway that New York will sign the forward to a five-year, $212.5 million contract.
Oddsmakers loved the trade for Bridges as New York went from +1700 at FanDuel to win next year’s title up to +900, which was tied for the fourth-best odds. Bringing back Anunoby jumped them even higher as they’re now +750, which is third-highest behind only the Boston Celtics (+300) and Denver Nuggets (+750).
The Knicks acquired Anunoby midway through the 2023-24 campaign, and he had a tangible impact when on the court. The issue is he missed more games than he appeared in with an elbow injury before hurting his hamstring in the playoffs against the Indiana Pacers.
In Game 7, when he came back from a four game absence due to the aforementioned injury, he was hobbled, playing mostly in the first quarter before having to sit out what ended up being a blowout.
He averaged 14.1 points, 4.4 boards, 1.5 assists and 1.7 steals in the regular season and 15.1 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.1 dimes and 0.9 steals in nine postseason games.
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