The Knicks ask Anunoby to cool down hot opponents

NEW ORLEANS — The spotlight Thursday night in Minnesota deservedly fell on Karl-Anthony Towns, who returned to the city where he was a fixture, and his performance lived up to the attention.

But Towns might not have had a chance to be in the spotlight if the Knicks hadn’t dealt with Julius Randle. And as usual, that job fell to OG Anunoby.

Randle started off hot, scoring 15 points in the first quarter with Precious Achiuwa scoring first. But when Randle was fired up, Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau switched to Anunoby and the fire was extinguished.

Against Achiuwa, Randle scored 12 points on 5-7 shooting with two quick assists. When did Anunoby take over? Randle was 1 of 6 with two turnovers and scored just four points – two of them from the free throw line.

“I know OG puts a lot of people in jail,” Josh Hart said after the Knicks’ morning shootaround Saturday at the Smoothie King Center. “He’s someone we’re good at putting on the island with anyone, big or small, and he’ll change minds.

“I don’t understand how he can do half of it. Sometimes when he guards like (Philadelphia’s) Tyrese Maxey and is able to influence shots and stay in front of him, even though he knows Tyrese is fast as hell and OG isn’t. I have to say what it is. Then you put him on guys like Julius, who is a big, physical guy, plays the post position and can hold his own.

“So he’s a monster on defense alone and should definitely be a pure first or second team defense. We feel comfortable with this matchup against him and anyone else.”

Perhaps the most surprising thing about Anunoby is that he has only received one second-team All-Defensive honor, coming in the 2022-23 season with the Toronto Raptors.

Part of this is due to injuries that have limited his appearances in the past. When he was traded to the Knicks in a midseason trade, the injured Anunoby missed 31 of the 52 games. He was injured again in the postseason.

Part of this could be due to his personality. He makes himself laugh with his teammates, but often it’s because of his deadpan demeanor and word count that’s as low as the shooting percentage of the players he’s guarding.

“Just try to make it as difficult for him as possible,” Anunoby said of protecting his opponents. “Make him uncomfortable, force him to hit him hard.”

The Knicks rewarded him with the largest contract in franchise history, signing him to a five-year, $212 million contract.

“OG has been special all year,” Towns said. “We talk about it every day. He is so special. He is one of the best two-way players in the NBA. What he offers our team is worth every dollar.”

“Yeah, and that’s the beauty of OG,” Thibodeau said. “Sometimes you look at the box score and don’t realize how much of an impact it has on the game. It’s not an easy task. A guy like Julius and a guy like Anthony Edwards have to compete against them on every possession, and sometimes you can guard them great and they still get it done. You commit and you have to keep going, a second, third and fourth try. But OG, he’s as good as it gets defensively.”

It took some time, but the Knicks have started to recognize the pairing of Anunoby and Mikal Bridges as wing stoppers. Playing alongside him, even Bridges watched like a fan at times.

“It’s just who he is. “As long as I’ve known OG, he’s just been a menace,” Bridges said. “I think when Julius tried to isolate me, I thought, ‘Ohh,’ when he insulted Julius. It surprised me. So he just stays locked up and does all the little things. We appreciate it and we need it.”

Notes and quotes: Hart was back with the Knicks on Saturday and flew in late Friday after missing Thursday’s game for personal reasons. . . The Pelicans, plagued by injuries this season, were without Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram and Jose Alvarado. . . Pacome Dadiet and Ariel Hukporti were with the Knicks’ G League squad at the G League Showcase in Orlando on Saturday.

Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, as well as nearly every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.