Teammates with OG Anunoby for six seasons, including the Raptors’ NBA title in 2018-19, Fred VanVleet fully understands and embraces the notion that the Knicks traded for an ideal fit for their roster and coach Tom Thibodeau.
“I thought it was absolutely perfect, a great trade for them,” VanVleet told The Post at the Rockets’ morning shootaround ahead of Wednesday’s game at the Garden. “OG can space the floor and he’s an elite defender. And you probably won’t even see his true value until the playoffs, with all the different matchups. He can pretty much guard anybody.
“Thibs is gonna love him, obviously. But I think more than that, with all those Villanova guys you got over here, he fits right into that mold, a similar type of personality and player. I think he’s a great fit for their team, and you could see it right away the way he plugged right in and was able to have success. Definitely, I think New York is gonna love him.”
Indeed, the 26-year-old Anunoby hit the ground running with the Knicks; they entered Wednesday’s game with a 6-2 record since his arrival last month, although they had dropped two of their previous three after starting 5-0 with him in the lineup.
The two-way wing registered 14.5 points and 4.8 rebounds per game while shooting 50.6 percent from the floor and 41.7 percent from 3-point range in his first eight appearances with the Knicks.
He also posted a plus-134 rating over the stretch for an average of plus-16.8 — although his plus-2 rating in Monday’s loss to the Magic was the lowest since the late-December deal that sent RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley to the Raptors.
“OG’s a plug-and-play guy, and a guy like him can play for any team in the NBA with his skill set,” said VanVleet, who signed a three-year contract worth $128.5 million as a free agent with the Rockets last summer. “I think with more time here and as he gets more comfortable with everything and what their playing style is gonna be, he’s a heck of a guy to add to your team.
“He’ll be perfect next to Jalen [Brunson] and Julius [Randle] and those guys as a great complementary piece.
“He had a lot of big moments for us [in Toronto]. He’s such a great luxury to have on your team.”
The 29-year-old VanVleet, an All-Star in 2022, added that he and Anunoby “grew close” in Toronto, but he laughed while noting that his former teammate “definitely has a different personality.”
He also believes that Anunoby is driven by sitting out the Raptors’ title run in 2019 after undergoing an emergency appendectomy that April.
“Missing a lot of that year, he never really got his fulfillment of that run, because he wasn’t necessarily a huge part of it on the court at the end,” VanVleet said. “He’s stayed super-hungry and really wants to be a better player and have all the accolades that the greats have. He works his butt off every day, and that’s one thing I really admire about him.”
VanVleet said he’s also closely followed the career of Brunson — who is three years younger than him — since both hail from the Chicago area.
“It’s the same Jalen Brunson I saw as a 15-, 16-year-old at Stevenson High School. But now he’s doing it on the biggest stage,” VanVleet said. “You can see he’s getting comfortable here, he’s got his dad [Rick] over here [as an assistant coach], and he has a great relationship with [Knicks president] Leon [Rose].
“He’s really figuring out how to get it done, along with Thibs. This is the same kid I saw play in the Illinois area. I met him at Chris Paul’s camp when I was in college [at Wichita State] and he was in high school. Obviously I’ve followed his career from that point on to Villanova. … But to be doing this on the big stage, he’s a bona fide scorer in this league.”
VanVleet entered Wednesday’s game averaging 17.1 points and a career-best 8.5 assists in his first half-season with the Rockets, who began play 19-20 after a 22-60 finish in 2022-23.
“I’m having a blast, I’m loving it, taking a lot of pride in the day-to-day and trying to improve and help get the most out of these guys,” VanVleet said. “There’s a lot of joy in building and learning and growing with a young team, and I’m finding the happiness in that.
“It’s been a challenge, but it’s been fun.”
