On April 22, the New York Knicks faced the Detroit Pistons at home in the second match of the series. The Knicks had previously led 1-0 and tried to expand their lead. However, at the end of the first half, the home team temporarily fell behind 49-55, and the poor performance of forward OG Anunoby also became an important reason for the Knicks to fall into a passive position.

In the first half, Anunoby played for 20 minutes and his overall performance was relatively inefficient. He only hit 2 of 6 shots , 0 of 3 shots from beyond the three-point line , and finally contributed only 4 points, 3 rebounds , 1 assist , and 1 steal, with a plus-minus value of -6 . This was in stark contrast to his excellent offense and defense in the previous game. Anunoby's continuous " iron " on the outside line directly limited the Knicks' offensive space and indirectly led to the obstruction of the team's overall offensive rhythm.

As a typical 3D player, Anunoby's outside shooting ability has always been an important scoring weapon for the Knicks in the regular season. During the regular season, his three-point shooting rate remained above 36%, averaging 12.3 points per game. However, in this game, his outside shooting touch was slow to open up, and he failed to seize several open three-point opportunities, missing a good opportunity to help the team narrow the gap.

At the same time, on the defensive end, although Anunoby still showed strong confrontation ability and completed a steal on the ball defense and assist defense, he seemed a little struggling in the face of Cunningham's breakthrough and pick-and-roll cooperation. The Pistons scored 55 points in the first half, most of which came from effective finishing from the outside and mid-range, which also reflects the Knicks' overall defensive rotation problems.

It is worth noting that the Knicks' core player Brunson scored 20+ in the first half , which led the team to launch a scoring offensive. However, his teammates' overall shooting performance was poor and they failed to effectively share his offensive pressure. In particular, key players such as Anunoby and Towns had poor touch, allowing the Pistons' defense to focus more on limiting Brunson's ball-holding offense.

If the Knicks want to achieve a reversal in the second half, in addition to Brunson's continued strong performance, Anunoby and other outside shooters must get back to form in time. After all, in a high-intensity confrontation like the playoffs, it is difficult to bring sustained victory by relying on only one core player.

In the next quarter, whether Anunoby's shooting percentage can be improved will directly affect whether the Knicks can regain the initiative in the game. The series is still stalemate, and every point and every shot is crucial.