The Knicks are officially on a roll.
Maybe a steamroll is more appropriate.
Just ask the defending champs.
The Knicks’ latest opponent was, on paper, its most daunting.
And they still flattened the Nuggets on Thursday, 122-84, getting an inspired performance from OG Anunoby and further evidence from Jalen Brunson that fans snubbed him in the All-Star voting.
Anunoby dropped 26 points in just 29 minutes — his highest total since joining the Knicks — while locking up Denver point guard Jamal Murray.
He recorded six steals and added to his legendary plus/minus status with a plus-38.
There’s impacting winning and there’s what Anunoby has done since he joined the Knicks, turning their defense from below average into a juggernaut.
“There’s a reason the crowd was chanting ‘OG.’ He was outstanding,” Nuggets coach Mike Malone said. “They’re 11-2 with him in the lineup now. He brings defense, he brings offense, he brings toughness, he brings physicality. He and the rest of the guys in the New York Knick uniforms tonight … were terrific from beginning to end. So give them a lot of credit for protecting their home court.”
Anunoby is happy but not surprised.
“That’s always what I wanted to do. I expect it,” he said. “I expect to make a difference.”
Brunson, fresh off being egregiously overlooked by the fans in the All-Star voting, added 21 points on an efficient 7 of 10 shooting.
He even dunked in the third quarter, a rare type of finish from the 6-foot-1 point guard, to give the Knicks a 27-point lead.
The blowout reached the point of Denver, making its lone appearance at MSG this season, throwing in the towel and sitting its starters for the entire fourth quarter.
Brunson and Julius Randle also got to relax on the bench for the final period.
It was that kind of night for the hottest team in the Eastern Conference. But Julius Randle, now in his 10th season, downplayed the significance.
“I ain’t gonna lie to you, bro, it’s regular season,” he said. “I could care less. I just like the fact that we won first and foremost. We don’t want to be on that end. We’re building the right habits. But for me, it only matters in April.”
The Knicks (28-17) have won five straight and 11 of their last 13, jumping ahead of the Cavaliers for fourth in the Eastern Conference.
Despite Randle’s downplay, Thursday’s win was notable for a few reasons.
First, the Knicks built their strong record by bludgeoning the bad teams, owning a 20-1 mark against squads under-.500 before Thursday.
But the Nuggets are the opposite of bad.
They’re betting favorites for a championship repeat with probably the best player in the world, Nikola Jokic.
They won five of their previous six games, including a statement victory at Boston on Friday.
But Malone’s squad was no match for the Knicks, who were missing Isaiah Hartenstein for a second straight game with a sore Achilles and didn’t skip a beat.
They led by double digits for the final 42 ½ minutes. They shot 52.9 percent. They held the Nuggets to 40.5 percent shooting. It was utter domination.
“We definitely played well,” Brunson said. “Give us credit on how we played today. But that’s a really good team out there and they had an off night.”
Indeed, the Nuggets (31-15) were at the end of a long road trip, so perhaps there were tired legs and minds looking forward to going home. But that can’t explain the scope of the blowout.
Jokic, who finished with 31 points and 11 rebounds on 13 of 18 shooting, got no help. Murray (just nine points on 3 of 11 shooting) was locked up by Anunoby, who got the “OG” chants at MSG and looked increasingly dominant.
“He’s getting more and more comfortable,” Brunson said. “He played really well tonight. He was aggressive on both sides of the ball. That’s the OG we got, the OG we saw playing against him. And he’s doing it in a Knicks uniform.”
An emphatic night for the home team.