Rumor has suggested that some teams were going to try to lure OG Anunoby away from the New York Knicks this summer. As it turns out, none of them will get the chance.
Anunoby agreed to a five-year contract with the Knicks on Wednesday, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. The deal is worth $212.5M and includes a trade kicker and a player option.
The Knicks could have offered Anunoby up to $245M over five years, and there were some claims that the player was underwhelmed by what the team was offering. Any issues on that front were clearly resolved quickly.
According to Ian Begley of SNY, Anunoby was likely to receive max offers if he hit the open market, but has a firm belief in the Knicks’ vision.
The Knicks acquired Anunoby from Toronto last December for RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley, gambling that they would be able to re-sign him long-term. They have won that bet. Though limited to 23 regular season games and nine playoff appearances by injury, the Knicks were outstanding when he was able to play and he combined 14.1 points per game with quality defense.
Some other teams were reportedly willing to make big offers to Anunoby if he hit the open market. That will not happen now, and the Knicks can concentrate on other business having already made another huge move to start their offseason.
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