It's up to OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges to keep moving once Jalen Brunson returns

Hopefully the Knicks get Jalen Brunson back later today, when they host the Phoenix Suns in a 7:00 p.m. start. Brunson’s return tonight would allow him to get back into game shape in time for the playoffs, as well as giving him enough games played to qualify for post-season awards. While he’s no threat to win the MVP, he should make an All-NBA squad, should he reach the minimum of 65 games played.

Assuming Brunson suits up tonight, the Knicks will have gone 9-6 without their All-Star point guard. The nattering nabobs of negativity will point out the losses to the good teams in this stretch. But that’s completely missing the point. The Knicks weren’t destroying the good teams with Brunson yet they were somehow supposed to flip the narrative without their leading scorer? The best thing you can say about that thinking is that it’s delusional.

Rather, the hope was that without Brunson that the Knicks would stay afloat and keep their playoff seeding. And they did just that. Additionally, they were able to initiate offense without not only Brunson but without the team’s second and third point guards for stretches of time in the past 15 games. That’s no easy feat.

And the Knicks thrived offensively because OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges picked up the slack. Anunoby became fearless driving to the rim while Bridges got more paint touches, too, even if not from point-blank range like Anuonby. Too often, those two wings were left standing around on the wing while Brunson over dribbled. With their point guard sidelined, Anunoby and Bridges moved more and attacked from all over the court.

The key moving forward is if that duo continues to be main offensive cogs, rather than oft-forgotten tertiary scorers. Brunson is a willing passer but it’s hard for Anunoby and Bridges to get open if they’re constantly stationary, watching Brunson dominate the ball. It’s why the team misses Donte DiVincenzo so much. He was a perpetual motion machine, even when the ball stuck in Brunson’s hands for an eternity.

It may not be the way either Anunoby or Bridges wants to play, to say nothing of Tom Thibodeau. But they need to move without the ball a whole lot more than they were the first two-thirds of the season. Josh Hart does a nice job of moving without the ball but he’s not a consistent offensive threat outside of the paint, like both Anunoby and Bridges are.

The return of Mitchell Robinson, along with the development of Landry Shamet, should allow more rest for Anunoby and Bridges. Which in turn should allow them not to play as if they need to constantly conserve energy.

The 2024-25 Knicks are on pace to eclipse the 50-win mark achieved by last season’s squad. Yet somehow fans are thinking this year’s team has no chance to compete with the top teams. It’s easy to come to that conclusion looking at the results versus the Cavaliers, Celtics and Thunder. But the situation requires a little more advanced thinking than just looking at the game logs.

Not once have the Knicks played those teams at full health. Early in the year they were missing Robinson and Shamet, along with Precious Achiuwa. And last time out against the Cavs, the Knicks were on the road, playing the second of a back-to-back, while playing without Brunson and Robinson. When the playoffs roll around, it should be more of a fair fight.

Let’s see how the Knicks do with Mitchell Robinson playing 25-plus minutes a night, along with a more-engaged offensive performance from Anunoby and Bridges. The pieces are there to compete with everyone. Now it’s up to the players and coach to make it happen.