Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart name KAT and OG Anunoby as early season most underrated Knick players: 'He's been killing'

The New York Knicks are not really beacons of consistency this season, but an early silver lining is the play of Karl-Anthony Towns and OG Anunoby. The two Knick newcomers are doing better than expected, earning them a shoutout from teammates Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart on the Roommates Show.

"I say KAT has, by far, been our MVP. He's just been great," said the Knicks point guard. "OG, he has been reliable on both sides of the ball. I say KAT because when we made the trade, everyone has this stigma of KAT. The way he's been performing, he's like, 'I don't care what y'all say about me, I'mma go out there and hoop.' He's been killing."

Hart echoed the same sentiments, calling OG "Dunkanoby" while praising Towns' red-hot shooting from everywhere. That said, there has been more to the numbers than meets the eye.

How Towns and Anunoby are helping the Knicks

KAT has confidently anointed himself as the best big-man shooter of all time, ahead of such names as Dirk Nowitzki or Chris Bosh. The Dominican Republic national team mainstay may not have the individual accolades of the aforementioned sweet-shooting bigs, but it's hard to argue against the numbers.

For instance, the former Kentucky Wildcat is shooting a blistering 47 percent from distance in 5.2 attempts. This opens up driving lanes from all over the floor for New York, leading to the second-best offensive rating in the Association, just a shade behind the defending champions, Boston Celtics.

Analysts, like ESPN's Brian Windhorst, predicted the Knicks will have the NBA's best offense, and so far, Windy isn't too far off, thanks to Towns' contributions. Overall, KAT is averaging an efficient 25.8 points (54/47/85 shooting splits), a career-high 12.7 rebounds, and 3.3 assists. Towns, as expected, had to do better defensively, but he's been as effective as a center could have been beside Brunson.

On the other hand, Anunoby is helping the Knicks offense in an entirely different way. The 2019 NBA champ causes mayhem with his off-ball movement. As per SNY, OG shows he never needed the ball in his hands for too long, as he is currently last among the Knicks starters in touches per game (44.1). Nevertheless, he is third in the team in scoring (17.9) behind Brunson and Towns.

How did he do that? The article continued: "Anunoby has been New York's best off the ball cutter. He can also play like a rim-diving center in the dunker spot and he's also been able to score in the post when teams switch or try to hide smaller defenders on him. Anunoby produces 1.19 points per possession on post-ups, which is 10th in the NBA. He can make plays in transition. 19.7 percent of Anunoby's points have come off fastbreak opportunities per NBA Stats, the highest mark of any of New York's eight rotation players."

That's why it's unsurprising that the Knicks outscore opponents by 6.8 points in Anunoby's minutes this season.

Came with a price

The Knicks mortgaged their future and some of their depth by bringing in KAT and OG (not to mention Mikal Bridges). They lost Donte DiVincenzo in the Towns trade, possibly the Knicks' best connective playmaker last year. Moreover, New York gave up RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley for Anunoby, who are thriving on the north side of the border.

But then again, a deal has to be made in both situations. As mentioned, the Orange and Blue desperately needed a center, while Barrett and Quickley wouldn't have developed as they should have, with JB taking on most of the playmaking duties. They needed Anunoby more as he thrives playing away from the ball, along with his already solid defense.

"He's long, quick, and strong. There's no backing him down in the post. There's no blowing by him off the dribble. There's no screening him off the ball if he doesn't want to switch," The Ringer's Michael Pina said of the 6'7" forward.

The Knicks are still among the worst defensive teams in the league this season. However, expect a turnaround, especially for a Tim Thibodeau-led team. If New York eventually finds its groove on defense as much as it is clicking on all cylinders on offense, then fans will know for sure who's winning in all these trades.