The 34-17 Knicks, at the No. 3 spot in the East, have one of the best starting lineups in the NBA. Two are All-Star starters this season.
Point guard Jalen Brunson and center Karl-Anthony Towns have been among the best players in the NBA and were voted to the Eastern Conference All-Star starting lineup announced late last month. Knicks forwards OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges, and guard Josh Hart, the team’s other three starters, are All-Star caliber players.
However, the team’s bench isn’t as deep and versatile. Forward Precious Achiuwa (19.9 minutes) and guard Miles “Deuce” McBride (23.3 mins) are the only Knicks reserves that average more than 15 minutes per game. Guards Cam Payne and Landry Shamet have been assigned limited roles.
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When Anunoby sprained his right foot versus the Los Angeles Lakers at Madison Square Garden on Saturday in a 128-112 loss, and missed Monday’s and Tuesday’s games versus the Houston Rockets at MSG and the Toronto Raptors on the road, Achiuwa replaced him in the starting lineup, further stress testing the Knicks bench.
Up until Monday, the 27-year-old Anunoby played in every game this season, a notable milestone as he had only played in more than 70 games of the NBA’s 82-game regular season schedule just once in his career, appearing in 74 games during his 2017-18 rookie campaign. Achiuwa, who was traded to the Knicks with Anunoby from the Raptors last season for former Knicks RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley, has filled in solidly.
He scored seven points and had nine rebounds in 34 minutes in a 124-118 win over the Rockets and a season-high 17 points and eight rebounds on Tuesday in the Knicks’ 121-115 victory against the Raptors. Achiuwa augmented Brunson’s game-high 42 versus the Rockets and Towns’ 27 points and 20 rebounds against the Raptors.
In the absence of Anunoby, Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau called on 22-year-old rookie center Ariel Hukporti, who prior to Monday had played in just 17 games this season. Hukporti has forged ahead of center Jericho Sims on the depth chart and provided the Knicks quality minutes this week. He logged eight minutes against the Rockets and 19 versus the Raptors.
“Great energy. That was the biggest thing,” said Brunson of Hukporti following the Rockets game. “Obviously, he is young and the flow of the game is different than he is used to, but he gave us great energy, good minutes. He used his fouls and made sure he was going to use them, but it was great energy for us.”
Help may be coming soon as center Mitch Robinson has been cleared by Knicks medical staff for contact activities for the first time since undergoing left ankle surgery last May. But ahead of today’s 3 p.m. NBA trade deadline, unless a move is made or has been made prior to AmNews press time, the Knicks’ thin bench remains a liability.
The Knicks will host the East’s No. 2 seed Boston Celtics on Saturday at MSG and play the Indiana Pacers on the road next Tuesday.