Knicks forward OG Anunoby is sidelined again with a right elbow injury.
Anunoby was ruled out of the Knicks’ matchup with the Golden State Warriors on Monday night due to a post-surgical flare-up in his right elbow. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Anunoby will be out indefinitely while they wait for the “elbow to calm down.”
A specific timeline for his return is unknown.
Anunoby underwent surgery to remove a loose bone fragment in his right elbow on Feb. 8. He was initially supposed to be out for just three weeks after the”minor” procedure, but he didn’t return until the Knicks’ 106-79 win over the Philadelphia 76ers on March 12. Anunoby appeared in three games, but most recently finished with just two points and shot 1-of-8 from the field in their win over the Sacramento Kings on Saturday.
Anunoby was dealt to the Knicks in December in a trade with the Toronto Raptors in exchange for RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley. The Knicks have gone 15-2 since Jan. 1 with him in the lineup, but are just 8-10 without him.
Anunoby, who the Raptors took with the No. 23 overall pick in 2017, has averaged 14.5 points and 4.9 rebounds per game with the Knicks this season. The 26-year-old is in the third year of a four-year, $72 million deal.
The Knicks will wrap up a four-game road trip with games against the Warriors on Monday and then the Denver Nuggets on Thursday night. The Knicks entered Monday’s game in fourth in the Eastern Conference standings, but held only a three-game lead over a group of teams flirting with play-in tournament spots. If Anunoby ends up missing more than just a few games, the Knicks could very easily be in that conversation in the final stretch of the season.
Source Agencies
