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OG Anunoby is one of the best defensive wings in the business. In the 2023-24 NBA season, Only five players in the league had a higher defensive plus-minus than Anunoby’s mark of +3.1, despite Anunoby playing nearly half his games with the lottery-bound Toronto Raptors. His defensive numbers are consistently among the league’s best when he steps onto the court. The problem is, he hasn’t stepped onto the court enough these last few years.
Knicks’ Focal Focus: Maximizing OG Anunoby’s Impact
Post the 2019-20 COVID season, Anunoby has just played in 208 out of 318 games. That equates to 65.4% of the games, or ~54 games each full season. The talent is undeniable, but the health concerns are just as frightening. With this the Knicks’ first legitimate shot at a title in over 20 years, how do the Knicks maximize Anunoby’s impact and minimize the health risks?
Limiting Anunoby’s Total Minutes
OG’s healthiest seasons came as a youngster in the league. He averaged 70 games a year for the first three years of his career, and there seems to be a clear reason. In those three years, Anunoby averaged 23 minutes a night. For the Knicks to have a healthy Anunoby in the playoffs, Thibs must restrict OG to under 30 minutes a night. Now, obviously, Knicks fans will not be happy to hear this news. The sentiment will be “We gave a guy a five-year $212 million deal so that he plays under 30 minutes a night?” But that seems to be the case.
There’s a threshold that Anunoby has to stay under, and Thibs must keep this in mind if the Knicks want to win their first ring in over 50 years. To implement something like this, Anunoby often has to be the first man pulled out if the game is ending in a blowout. The Knicks are a deep team that should be able to hang on to leads in big wins. Thibs can shift Mikal Bridges to the small forward spot and Donte DiVincenzo to the shooting guard spot in those situations.
Bringing OG Anunoby off the Bench
I know, I know. There is a notion (rightfully) that because he’s paid like a star, he has to be played like a star. There are certain cases where that doesn’t work. Many have said that the 76ers should limit Joel Embiid‘s regular season load because of the depth in the squad. While Anunoby and Embiid are not nearly similar in impact, the Knicks are a much better team than the Sixers.
Bringing Anunoby off the bench will make him an instant impact player with specialized roles/assignments. Anunoby’s workload/minutes will depend on the opponent, the following games, and the timings. Will he agree to this? Unlikely, because of his contract, OG Anunoby believes that he is a star (or star-adjacent) player. As such, he will expect the treatment and the responsibility that stars take on. But the Knicks need him healthy in the postseason. The Knicks were ranked second on CBSSports’ ranking of best defensive units in the 2024-25 NBA season. The Knicks’ wing duo-Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby-is a big part of the reason.
The Last Word on OG Anunoby’s Impact
The coaching staff, the analytics departments, and the front office need to sit down with OG Anunoby and talk this out. His health in the postseason would have helped the Knicks beat the Pacers and make their first conference finals appearance since 2000. The Knicks cannot have his absence derail another season, particularly because of that contract, and they must be willing to do everything possible to make sure he’s 100% ready to take the floor when the lights are the brightest.
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TODAY'S BEST
Three potential trade destinations for Grizzlies' Ja Morant
The Memphis Grizzlies' (3-3) 2025-26 season is just six games old, yet issues have already begun to arise with star point guard Ja Morant. Friday night’s loss at home to the Los Angeles Lakers (4-2) saw the 2019 second overall pick struggle to the tune of just eight points, seven assists and one rebound on 3-of-14 shooting, which included going 0/6 from beyond the arc. While that performance was concerning enough for the Grizzlies, the way Morant handled himself during and after the game was even worse. Morant was seen avoiding the huddle during an in-game timeout, and in his postgame press conference, he quickly directed the blame for his off night onto the coaching staff. Those actions have since led to Morant being suspended one game by the Grizzlies for conduct detrimental to the team. It’s yet another ugly situation for Morant in Memphis, adding to a long list of issues that have emerged on and off the court. It couldn’t be more obvious that both the player and team need a breakup, so let’s take a look at the three best fits for Morant to get said change of scenery. Minnesota Timberwolves No team is in more desperate need of a point guard than the Timberwolves. Mike Conley, 38, has been starting at the position in recent games, and, as solid a career as he’s had, that is not a good thing at this point. Anthony Edwards feels like the only true offensive creator in Minnesota, so bringing in Morant would give both guys the freedom to feed off one another as a 1-2 punch. The T-Wolves will always be Edwards’ team, which could greatly benefit Morant by allowing him to focus on his game rather than deal with all that comes with being the face of a franchise. Toronto Raptors Something's got to give in Toronto. The time for patience has passed, and the excuses have to stop. This roster has more than enough talent to compete for a top-six seed in the Eastern Conference, yet it’s still just not working. Immanuel Quickley has often been injured and, quite frankly, has not been cutting it even when on the court. The Raptors have lots of nice pieces, but they lack that true closer when the game gets into crunch time; enter Morant. At 26 years old, he fits right into the timeline to win with Scottie Barnes (24), Brandon Ingram (28) and RJ Barrett (25) as the core in Toronto. Time for another Kawhi Leonard-esque splash from Bobby Webster and company. Washington Wizards The third and final team that could be a sneaky good landing spot is the Wizards. Washington finally appears to have a direction and will eventually be able to start adding higher-end talent around the young nucleus they’re building. They may not be a contender anytime soon, but Alex Sarr, Kyshawn George, Tre Johnson and Bilal Coulibaly have it feeling like the culture is shifting positively. Given that expectations are low, Morant could come in alongside all of this young talent, play his game and put the distractions aside. Not to mention the Wizards could probably make things work with Memphis thanks to their cap space and draft capital.
Intriguing reunion on table for Steelers with trade deadline nearing
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a team that is looking to solidify itself as a competitor in the AFC for the 2025 season, and the franchise should be looking to make some moves around the trade deadline. The organization already brought in safety Kyle Dugger from the New England Patriots, and he made an immediate impact in a win over the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday. The Steelers could use some help on the offensive side of the ball as well, but more additions could be made to shore up the defense as well. There is some positional uncertainty at safety for the Steelers as well as a bunch of injuries. The position has changed a ton throughout the season, and the Steelers could certainly use some more depth in the area. Unfortunately, Minkah Fitzpatrick would only be an option if he were to be cut as Pittsburgh cannot trade for him within two years of trading him away. However, his former running mate, Damontae Kazee, is a potential option for the Steelers after he was released by the Cleveland Browns on Monday. Kazee is a veteran with a good amount of experience, and he could certainly sign with Pittsburgh if the front office wants him to return to the black and gold. However, there are other safety-needy teams throughout the league as well. The coaching staff in the Steel City understands and appreciates familiar voices on the roster, and Kazee could provide decent depth while also being familiar with the defense and everyone in the building. Juan Thornhill and Chuck Clark have been other contributors at safety for the Steelers in 2025, but there is a real chance that Kazee might be a better option than either of those players. Both Thornhill and Clark have seemed to be at the center of communication issues in the secondary, and whenever there is an obvious coverage bust, Clark seems to always be one of the players closest to it. Kazee signed with the Browns during the 2025 offseason, and he had only played in four games through the first nine weeks of the season. He had been on the field for just 11 defensive snaps, as he seemed to be more of a special teamer in Cleveland. Despite the reduced role in 2025, he could provide some value to Pittsburgh, even if he is just signed to the practice squad. The fan base in Pittsburgh might not have always loved Kazee, but he played a lot of football for the Steelers throughout the three seasons he spent with the team. At the very least, he provides depth for Pittsburgh at a position of need, and he wouldn't be expensive to sign. This is the type of signing the Steelers would make, and it completely makes sense to do so. Pittsburgh Steelers have found a successful safety combination Ahead of Pittsburgh's game on Sunday against the Colts, it was announced that cornerback Jalen Ramsey would be playing exclusively free safety. He had been playing some safety throughout the year depending on what the opposing offense was doing, but on Sunday, he did not leave the position. It was Ramsey and Dugger leading the way in the defensive backfield, and the duo had a pretty good day. It will be interesting to see if that is something the Steelers continue to use in the coming weeks, but it probably should be since it was so effective against the best offense in the NFL.
3 Depressing Realizations From Green Bay Packers Crushing Loss Against Carolina
The Green Bay Packers continue to frustrate fans by failing to play up to their lofty standards. For a team that has impressed during most of this 2025 season, what was supposed to be an exciting return home to Lambeau Field against the Carolina Panthers quickly soured into a very gloomy afternoon. Here are three key takeaways from the Packers’ first home loss of the year. #1: Dismal Red Zone Play Dooms Green Bay Packers Offense Entering Sunday, Green Bay had a 70% TD rate when entering the red zone, one of the highest marks in the league. Quarterback Jordan Love was in the upper tier of passers in red zone completion percentage. However, against Carolina, the team went just 1 for 5. In the first half, a Savion Williams red zone fumble started the day off on the wrong foot. Later, Jordan Love threw multiple incompletions and Matt LaFleur chose to kick a field goal on 4th 6 at the Carolina 8 yard line. The 8 yard line was a site of issues for the Packers in the 4th quarter as well. On 3rd 3, Emanuel Wilson got the ball and ran for -5 yards on what was a massive play in the game. Down 13-6, the Packers then turned it over on downs on the ensuing 4th 8. While part of the issues were obviously execution-related, the play-calling can also be questioned. As much as LaFleur has the reputation of an elite play-designer, his situational play-calling and play-call sequencing continues to feel like it needs improvement. 10 points on 5 red zone trips is absolutely abysmal. This kind of outing is what makes one of the more talented squads in the NFL a beatable team. #2: Defensive Line Takes a Step Back Although they only gave up 16 points, the defense did not have a good day. QB Bryce Young barely passed for 100 yards, but the Panthers averaged 5 yards per carry on their way to 163 rushing yards. Lead back Rico Dowdle specifically averaged 5.2 yards a carry on 25 totes, scoring both Panthers touchdowns. Carolina is one of the better running teams in the NFL, but the Packers still routinely failed to get the stops they needed in critical running situations. The Packers gave up 11 rushing first downs and were consistently getting pushed back at the line of scrimmage. While the overall unit played below par, it was Micah Parsons who had a truly poor day. While also being culpable in an underwhelming day against the run, Parsons failed to impact the game as a pass rusher and was locked down by Panthers tackle Icky Ekwonu. #0 failed to record a single pressure in the game, something he has never done before. The team once again had 0 sack yards, as the lone QB takedown by Xavier McKinney netted 0 yards. The issues in the secondary are well documented, the defensive line not carrying their weight is even more concerning. #3: Tucker Kraft-Sized Hole Means It’s Now or Never For Young Skill Position Players Arguably more depressing than the loss itself was the fact that star TE Tucker Kraft when down with a serious knee injury that, the following day, was declared to be an ACL tear. Kraft was on his way to an All-Pro season and now is going to be missing the rest of the season. With 489 yards and 6 receiving touchdowns on the year, Kraft led the team in both categories. At the tight end spot, Luke Musgrave is obviously going to have to step up in a major way. He has shown the ability to be a weapon, particularly in 2023 during his rookie season, but now he is going to have to level up his game even more. More realistically, it will be the young wide receivers who are going to need to pick up the slack for Kraft. Matthew Golden and Savion Williams, both of whom had forgettable afternoons on Sunday, are going to have to grow up fast if the Packers are going to continue being a Super Bowl threat. With Golden in particular, much of his hype so far this season has been about how he has been a good separator, or near-miss highlights of what could have been. It’s now time for him to actually produce like a first-round receiver. Golden’s fellow first-rounders Tetairoa McMillan and Emeka Egbuka have had no issues producing as primary options on their respective teams. While it wasn’t fair to compare Golden’s situation to theirs, Green Bay is now in a situation where they need a player of Golden’s caliber to rise to the occasion and help Christian Watson be a focal point of the passing attack.
Eagles geared up for another Super Bowl run after Jaelan Phillips trade
The Philadelphia Eagles are already Super Bowl contenders, but that's not stopping general manager Howie Roseman from bolstering his roster before the trade deadline on Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET. On Monday, the Miami Dolphins sent linebacker Jaelan Phillips to the Eagles for a 2026 third-round pick (via ESPN's Adam Schefter). It's the third defensive trade Roseman and company have made in the past week. They already improved their secondary by acquiring cornerback Jaire Alexander from the Baltimore Ravens and CB Michael Carter II from the New York Jets. How Jaelan Phillips trade benefits Eagles Trading for 26-year-old Phillips should help the Eagles (6-2) solve one of their bigger defensive problems: the ability to generate pressure consistently. Per Pro Football Reference, Philadelphia is tied for 19th in the NFL in pressure rate (19 percent). It also has 16 sacks, tied with the Las Vegas Raiders (2-6) for 23rd in the league. Phillips had just three sacks through his first nine games with Miami, but he's still a quality pass-rusher. Pro Football Reference has credited him with 18 pressures this season, tied with Denver Broncos LB Nik Bonitto and Pittsburgh Steelers LB T.J. Watt for the 12th most in the league. That's great company for Phillips to be in. Both of those star defenders are Defensive Player of the Year candidates. As of Monday, DraftKings Sportsbook gives Bonitto +850 odds to win the award and Watt +3500 odds to capture it. Star Philadelphia LB Nolan Smith Jr. is expected to return from a triceps injury in Week 10 against the Green Bay Packers. He last played in Week 3 against the Los Angeles Rams. His return and the Phillips trade may now put the Eagles defense — which ranks 19th in the league in points allowed (23.1) — in a position to hit its stride. Even if their team is winning, top GMs, like two-time Super Bowl champion Roseman, continue to find ways to strengthen their clubs. He's likely done that again by landing Phillips.
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