The Gods of Sports Injuries are going to have to work on their timing if the plan is to break the Knicks’ will by leaving them shorthanded.
Because it turned out Wednesday that the answer to a much-feared question — “Who will step up if the Knicks ever have to play without Brunson?” — was OG Anunoby. And then it turned out that the answer to “Where will the Knicks turn next if a suddenly hot Anunoby goes down, too?” was that a hobbled Brunson will just flip a switch and play like a snubbed MVP once again.
Perhaps the best example yet in these NBA playoffs that you just can’t kill these Knicks was that Anunoby and Brunson alternated as alphas during a 130-121 victory against the Pacers in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. The Knicks lead the series 2-0.
Look at it this way: Anunoby didn’t just set a 35-game playoffs-career-high with 28 points. He had the 10th-highest scoring game of his career, including 418 regular-season games. He did it while playing just 28 minutes. And he was at his best while Brunson was sidelined.
