OG Anunoby-Desmond Bane altercation laughed off in win over Magic
Knicks forward OG Anunoby reacts to Orlando Magic guard Desmond Bane after he threw a ball that hit Anunoby's back on Sunday. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
It takes a lot to ruffle OG Anunoby.
Anunoby is one of the most stoic and least emotional players in the NBA. He’s usually not one to celebrate the highs or whine about the lows. He’s the guy you expect to grab a teammate and help lower the heat when tempers flare on the court.
Yet even the most even-keeled of players has a line that can’t be crossed, as was on full display in the fourth quarter of the Knicks’ 106-100 win over the Orlando Magic on Sunday at Madison Square Garden.
With a little more than six minutes left in the game and the Knicks leading by 11, Anunoby missed a fast-break layup and fell out of bounds, winding up on his hands and knees. Desmond Bane grabbed the rebound, but instead of turning to start the fast break, the Magic guard reared back and fired a fastball at Anunoby’s back.
“What are you doing?” a stunned Anunoby could be seen yelling as he popped up and pushed Bane in the chest.
The players were separated. Officials reviewed the play and assessed a technical foul on Bane for a “hostile act.’’
While both players seemed to quickly move past it, the Madison Square Garden crowd did not. The fans continued to boo Bane every time he touched the ball.
Anunoby, who rarely shows even a flicker of emotion on the court, finished with 21 points and seven rebounds. Five of those points came after the technical on Bane as he drove for a dunk with 3:20 left and followed it with a three-pointer on the next possession to make the score 101-90.
Anunoby shrugged off the incident after the game, indicating that Bane’s technical was more of a brain cramp than anything else.
“It was funny,” Anunoby said. “I mean, maybe it was [excessive], but he’s a good dude. It was funny. I was confused at first and then it was funny.”
Orlando Magic guard Desmond Bane, left, and Knicks forward OG Anunoby talk after Sunday's game. Credit: AP/John Munson
Bane, however, is no stranger to aggressive tactics. He was ejected earlier in the season against Atlanta after committing a flagrant foul on Onyeka Okongwu and spiking the ball at his head as he fell. Bane also has had a confrontation with Kevin Durant.
“It was one of the funniest things I’ve seen on the basketball court,” Josh Hart said of the incident with Anunoby. “It was hilarious. I don’t even think OG was mad. He was like, ‘Bro, what’s up?’ . . . Most of the time, I was looking at the replay trying not to laugh.”
It was Anunoby’s second game back after missing 2 1⁄2 weeks with a hamstring injury. The Knicks needed him to come up big as they already were 0-2 against the Magic this season and were playing without Karl-Anthony Towns, who was out with a left calf injury.
Orlando is the only team to have beaten the Knicks at the Garden this season. The Knicks (16-7 overall, 13-1 at home) lost to the Magic, 124-107, at the Garden on Nov. 12. Ten days later, they were beaten in Orlando, 133-121.
A little more than midway through the first quarter of Sunday’s game, star forward Franz Wagner, going up for a dunk on a lob pass from Anthony Black, was fouled hard by Knicks center and fellow German Ariel Hukporti.
Wagner landed awkwardly, and after writhing on the court while grabbing his left knee, he was helped off the court by his brother Mo and a team staff member. The Magic announced that Wagner had suffered a lower-leg injury and will be re-evaluated after the team’s return to Orlando.
Losing Wagner for a significant period would be a big blow for the Magic, who entered the game having won nine of their last 12, including the two wins over the Knicks. Wagner was the team’s top scorer in both of those wins, putting up 28 at the Garden and 37 in Orlando.
Jalen Brunson had a huge game for the Knicks, pairing 30 points with nine assists, and Hart added 17 points and 12 rebounds.
The strong performance from Anunoby on both ends of the court was encouraging. He was particularly impressive from beyond the arc, shooting 5-for-7.
“The versatility that OG gives us is unbelievable,” coach Mike Brown said. “At his size, he can guard a lot of people. It’s huge because he can guard one through five. And then his ability to attack the rim, all of those things at his size is huge for us.”
Huge and much needed, whether he is emotional or not.
McBride exits early
Deuce McBride left the game with a left ankle injury. Reports said X-rays were negative and that he will undergo an MRI on Monday . . . With the Knicks leading by 12 and 1:35 remaining, Brown emptied the bench, but he had to get Brunson, Hart and Mikal Bridges back in the game with 19.1 seconds left after the Magic got within seven.
Barbara Barker is an award-winning columnist and features writer in the sports department at Newsday. She has covered sports in New York for more than 20 years.
