RJ Barrett was naive to question whether the Garden fans would cheer. Appreciation was inevitable. This crowd had endured nearly two decades of misery, and Barrettās tenure can only be viewed as joyous in that context.
Low bars make for good applause.
So Barrett and Immanuel Quickley received a standing ovation during pregame introductions. It was a fairly emphatic reaction, rousing and voluminous. MSG gave them a dual video tribute during the first timeout.
Great for everybody involved.
But the rest of the evening served as just another reminder why the Knicks shipped them over the north border. By the third quarter, those claps for Barrett and Quickley turned into āMVPā chants for Jalen Brunson as the Knicks beat up the Raptors, 126-100.
Most of the analysis and debate about the trade concerns the impact and fit of OG Anunoby, which has been seamless and virtually perfect.
But also the trade was about Brunson. Everything about the Knicks these days is about Jalen Frigginā Brunson. Their best pathway to offensive efficiency, without question, is through Brunson. He didnāt need to share the ball with more scorers, specifically Barrett and Quickley, because heās the best ball-dominant scorer this franchise has rostered since Carmelo Anthony. Heās the Knicksā best scoring point guard since ā¦ yes, weāre going to go there ā¦ Clyde Frazier.
No apologies to Stephon Marbury.
When Barrett, Quickley and the rebuilding Raptors showed weakness Saturday, Brunson dissected them with his usual array of pivots, misdirections and dead-eye shots. These days a 38-point performance like Saturday feels expected from Brunson.
There was nothing Barrett could do about it.
āIām not surprised by it at all,ā said Julius Randle, who recorded a triple-double with 16 rebounds. āItās him doing it on a consistent basis and doing it easy.ā
You could tell Barrett was amped for the game. He drew a charge within the first two minutes ā his first since two seasons ago. He dunked in front of the Knicks bench and flexed. Barrettās revenge juices were flowing. His mistake, however, was taking on the assignment of guarding Brunson. That part predictably backfired.
āFelt like another game, honestly,ā Brunson said about playing his former teammate. āOnce you get over that part and the ball is up in the air everything else goes out the window.ā
Barrett and Quickley were many good things with the Knicks. Defensive juggernauts, they were not.
Which was the other reason for the deal: the Anunoby factor.
Soon after the trade, an NBA assistant coach broke down why he feels Tom Thibodeau is trying to replicate his teams and playing style from Chicago. More specifically, he offered these player comparisons:
Brunson is Derrick Rose: ball-dominant, score-first point guards.
Anunoby is Luol Deng: defensive stalwart on the wing.
Julius Randle is Carlos Boozer: rebounders and adept finishers at power forward.
Isaiah Hartenstein and Mitchell Robinson are Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson: the dirty-work crew, with Noah and Hartenstein capable of dishing.
Sure, there are plenty of differences between these players. But Thibodeau has a type and a playing style. Anunoby fits that better than either Quickley or Barrett.
His plus-minus of plus-190 ā a league-best ā tells the story that Anunoby doesnāt, because heās famously brief in interviews. But he digs the Deng comparison.
āThereās similarities, for sure,ā he said.
The vibes are all positive now for the Knicks, but there are concerns about how this will all look in the playoffs. Anunoby hasnāt played more than 69 games in his past five seasons. There were fluky injuries and circumstances involved, but the Raptors were also among the originators of load management.
Thibodeau doesnāt do load management.
At the risk of being labeled a Minutes Police informant, it isnāt a given Anunoby will hold up physically while playing every game at a career-high minutes clip. Even Hartenstein, the extremely durable and seemingly indispensable starting center, sat most of the second half after suffering an ankle injury. His status for the next game is unclear. That was Saturdayās reminder that things can always go sideways.
Though the most important lesson is Brunson didnāt need to be sharing the shots with the players now in Toronto.
