Bucks Star Stifled by Knicks’ OG Anunoby

OG Anunoby made sure the Greek Freak was rendered relatively ordinary when the Milwaukee Bucks faced his New York Knicks on Friday night.

Drawing Giannis Antetokounmpo duty on defense, Anunoby held the Bucks’ superstar in relative check upon Milwaukee visited Madison Square Garden: Antetokounmpo mustered 24 points and 12 rebounds that looked relatively paltry compared to the 33 and 13.3 he respectively averaged over his last four games.

New York prevailed by a 116-94 final, as it built a massive lead while Anunoby shadowed Antetokounmpo. Most of Antetokounmpo’s damage came when the game was well out of reach, as he was 6-of-10 in a second half that saw the Knicks (4-4) go up by as much as 30. Anunoby also forced three steals and two blocks, accounting for a quarter of Milwaukee’s dozen turnovers.

“OG is very unique,” head coach Tom Thibodeau noted, per Kristian Winfield of the New York Daily News. “He’s got strength, speed, anticipation, and a second, third-effort mentality. A lot of what he does goes unnoticed, but his teammates have great appreciation for him. You can’t measure the little things he does on every possession.”

Anunoby also carried some offensive weight: though he was 1-of-8 from three-point range, he wound up with 14 points and also tallied six rebounds with five assists.

Antetokounmpo was hardly in any mood to discuss Anunoby’s impact in a contentious postgame session. His teammates in the victorious Knicks locker room, on the other hand, were more than happy to take on such a task.

Anunoby, for example, has already left a lasting impression on new Knick Karl-Anthony Towns, who is well accustomed to defensive mastery thanks to his time with the Minnesota Timberwolves.

“He’s special. He’s so special what he brings to the defensive end,” Towns said, per Phillip Martinez of SNY. “I’ve been in the league for a decade now. I don’t know many people who play like OG in my lifetime. One of the best defenders that I’ve seen and I played with Rudy Gobert. He’s special. I can’t say that enough.”

“It looks so easy and effortless the way he’s able to do that,” point guard/captain Jalen Brunson said in the same report. “It’s the pure talent that he has. The way he’s able to guard the ball, the way he plays off the ball in situations, he’s a phenomenal piece that we have. He’s been great since he’s been here.”

Anunoby will look to close the weekend out on a high note come Sunday, when the Knicks visit the Indiana Pacers (5 p.m. ET, MSG).

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