OG Anunony won't be ready for Game 4, Knicks' status remains murky

NBA

By Stéphane Bondy

Published
May 11, 2024, 1:04 a.m. ET

INDIANAPOLIS — OG Anunoby actually missed Friday night’s 111-106 Game 3 loss to the Pacers because of his strained hamstring — and he’s likely out next game as well — but traveled with the Knicks to Indy, according to Tom Thibodeau.

The coach remained vague on Anunoby’s status, saying he was unaware of the severity of the strain or the recovery timetable.

However, sources have confirmed that Anunoby will not be ready for Game 4 on Sunday.

Hamstring recoveries are tricky and difficult to predict.

OG Anunoby grabs his leg after injuring his hamstring while driving to the basket during the third quarter. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post

“Our medical team is here, so it makes sense (for Anunoby to be in Indianapolis),” Thibodeau said. “So keep working at it and we’ll see where he is every day.”

Anunoby appeared limping and straining his hamstring in the third quarter of Game 2 on Wednesday.

He was quickly ruled out of the third quarter.

The Knicks are 26-5 with him in the lineup and 0-1 without him in the Pacers series.

“If you get injured in a game, your rehab is basically your game,” Thibodeau said. “Then stay in there.” Receive treatment three times a day and continue working on it. This is where he is currently.

With his 18 rebounds Friday, Josh Hart became the first Knick since Patrick Ewing in 1999 to record consecutive playoff games with at least 15 rebounds.

Follow The Post’s coverage of the Knicks in the NBA playoffs

And before Friday, he had run a total of 27.2 miles on the field during the playoffs, a bit more than the New York Marathon.

Josh Hart makes a shot on Andrew Nembhard #2 of the Indiana Pacers during the fourth quarter. Charles Wenzelberg/New York Post

Since they started tracking distance, he is the first player to run the equivalent of a marathon in eight games.

“There it is. That means I’m in pretty good shape,” Hart said. “This definitely means that once this season is over, for about 3 weeks, I will do nothing but eat, drink wine and relax. That’s what it means.

Donte DiVincenzo was in no mood to celebrate his career-high 35 points in the playoffs.

“We took an L. That’s how I saw it,” he said. ” It does not mean anything. For the next match, I have to be better in the other categories. And that’s what I’m going to watch.