OG Anunoby is clutch, and there is more to cite than the forward’s marquee moment from the bubble two summers ago.
For instance: There are just four active players who a) have played in at least 20 playoff games; b) have taken more than Anunoby’s 187 field-goal attempts; and c) have a true-shooting percentage higher than Anunoby’s 63.6 percent. Two are traditional big men who take the majority of their shots in the paint: Rudy Gobert and Deandre Ayton. Two are 3-point specialists: Duncan Robinson and Seth Curry.
The closest two-way wing with a similar shot profile, if not at all a similar sample size or usage: Kawhi Leonard, who is at 62.1 percent on nearly 2,000 field-goal attempts. That guy is good, huh?
We always slip back to that guy, don’t we? Anyway, back to Anunoby, who came as close to Leonard, at least in terms of quotability, when asked if the deflating nature of Game 3 would bother him.
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“Try to win Game 4 and go back to Philly,” Anunoby said, recalling a Leonard classic.
With a little more help on Wednesday, Anunoby would know he was headed back to Philadelphia, regardless of Saturday’s result. He had 26 points on 8-for-18 shooting — his worst percentage of the series — and matched Joel Embiid for the most free-throw attempts for the night.
“He was good. He looked really confident with the ball, got himself to places,” Nick Nurse said. “I thought he made good plays; he made a few passes out of positions that he took the ball to as well and made some tough shots as well — made some really contested 3s. Those were the plays at the moment, and he stepped into them tonight.”
No argument. Even as Anunoby’s defence hasn’t been quite what you would hope for this series, and the whole season really, his playoff resumé continues to be unimpeachable. A 25-year-old two-way wing who consistently gets better in the playoffs? Yes, please.
There is obviously a big old “but” coming, so let’s not delay it any longer. James Harden, a competent-at-best one-on-one defender, has been the player most frequently defending him. He sees nearly as much of Tyrese Maxey and Danny Green, smaller players whom he can overpower, as he does of Embiid and Tobias Harris.
In other words, the 76ers are game planning to slow down Pascal Siakam (and succeeding). Keeping Anunoby in check is not as much of a priority, and he’s thriving — but the 76ers are winning. Doc Rivers likely wouldn’t oblige Nurse if he asked him, “Hey, can you give Anunoby the attention you usually give Siakam? We need to see it to gain further information to inform our long-term developmental plans.”
Accordingly, the question becomes what is the best way to interpret the information that exists? The answer, with Anunoby, has always been to increase his responsibility, little by little, year by year. This was his first season above 20 percent usage — by definition, league average — and his efficiency tailed off. After two seasons at or above 60 percent true shooting, he was down to 54.9 percent. An extended shooting slump was a big part of that, and that overlapped with the period of unknown length when he was playing with a fractured ring finger.
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It was not a lost season for Anunoby, but his 23.4 percent usage before his November hip pointer gave way to an 18.9 percent mark after his return from that injury. He posted the first number largely in the absence of Siakam, and the second number was held down because of a few other disruptions: a run through health and safety protocols, a broken finger and a thigh contusion. Siakam, Anunoby and Scottie Barnes were first, seventh and 12th in minutes played per game this season; given that, the trio logging just 673 minutes together — not a nominal number, but not enough to truly get comfortable with each other in the context of the half-court offence — was unfortunate.
It seems inevitable that the Raptors are heading toward a more democratic offence, and they are starting from a more egalitarian place than most. Barnes’ development is the biggest factor in how much things swing, but if we should draw any conclusions from Anunoby’s play in this postseason and others, it’s that he deserves a bit more creative leeway. His default is generally to try and overpower his defender, but he showed a willingness to at least get to the playoff-friendly midrange, even when Embiid was on him. The results weren’t good in between the 3-point arc and the paint, but given Anunoby’s Leonard-like strength, if not fluidity, he has the capability to become a competent and efficient three-level scorer. He certainly has the catch-and-shoot part down, and there are some burgeoning play-making skills the Raptors need to nurture.
“His starting and ending drives, as we keep talking about, is getting better,” Nurse said. “Little bit of a post game. He’s got a little bit there to show and do. But, what is he, five years in now? He’s a good player who can score a little bit. He should be producing those kinds of numbers for his team.”
“I think just staying in the moment and not getting too high or too low,” Fred VanVleet said of the key to Anunoby’s playoff steadiness. “He’s had a chance to show what he can do, and we’re gonna need him to be pretty good going forward. It’s a luxury to have a guy like that on both ends of the floor.”
VanVleet didn’t mean it like this, but it is probably wise to stop thinking of Anunoby as a luxury and start thinking of him as closer to an equal third part of the Raptors’ core. Obviously, Anunoby has not put up an offensive season comparable to the best of either VanVleet or Siakam. Without putting unnecessary pressure on him, because it wouldn’t do any good anyway, Anunoby needs a 70-game season badly — to see what he can do in the context of the Raptors at full strength, but also to get a larger sample of what he can do in a bigger role in the inevitable stretches when the team deals with injuries.
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Due to all of that, even deep into his career, as Anunoby enters what is conventionally a player’s early prime years, he is a mystery. This series has only reaffirmed his icy cool and big shot-making ability, and those are traits that deserve further investment and exploration.
(Photo: Tim Nwachukwu / Getty Images)
