One victory into his return following elbow surgery, OG Anunoby is pleased with his decision to undergo the procedure rather than try to play through the injury.
Anunoby has said he was dealing with pain in his elbow in January, despite the Knicks going 12-2 in his first 14 appearances — and now 13-2 in 15 — following a trade from the Raptors.
“It’s a lot better than it was the month of January,” Anunoby said after Tuesday’s 106-79 win over the 76ers. “I’m happy. Should get better and better.”
Anunoby hadn’t played since Jan. 27, and the Knicks announced on Feb. 8 that he’d undergone surgery to remove a bone fragment in his right elbow.
The defensive stalwart played 29 minutes in Tuesday’s win, finishing with 14 points, four rebounds and two made 3-pointers in five attempts.
Anunoby also was plus-28 to boost his aggregate plus-minus total in 15 games as a Knick to plus-280, or 18.7 per game.
“I thought I was going to come in and make an impact. Didn’t really think about it,” Anunoby said. “As the games go on, everything will start feeling better
“Definitely don’t feel the way I felt before I got [injured], conditioning-wise, but I’m sure it’ll come back, next game, it comes back fast.”
Precious Achiuwa was moved to the second unit after he’d started all 18 games with Anunoby sidelined.
Achiuwa, who arrived in the same trade with the Raptors, averaged 12.5 points, 9.5 rebounds, 1.8 blocked shots in 36.5 minutes per game as a starter.
He had an effective game off the bench Tuesday night with 13 points, eight boards and two blocks in 24 minutes.
Jericho Sims was dropped from the main rotation, though he played the final 5:55 of the Knicks’ blowout win.
The Knicks departed Wednesday for a key four-game road trip out west beginning Thursday night against the Trail Blazers, who have lost 13 of their last 16 games.
The Knicks, who will play 11 of their final 17 games away from the Garden, also will face the Kings, Warriors and the Nuggets on this trip.