Knicks’ OG Anunoby reportedly playing in Game 1 against Cavs in Eastern Conference finals

After missing the final two games of the second round with a left hamstring strain, New York Knicks forward OG Anunoby is “going to be playing in Game 1” of the 2026 Eastern Conference finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported Monday.

“That’s the most important thing to come out of the second round for [the Knicks],” Charania said during an appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show.”

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As of 4:15 p.m. ET on Monday, the Knicks had not yet submitted their injury report for Tuesday’s Game 1, leaving Anunoby’s official status unclear.

Anunoby suffered the injury late in Game 2 of the Knicks’ second-round series against the Philadelphia 76ers. He exited that game, a 108-102 Knicks win, with two and half minutes remaining in the fourth quarter and was later diagnosed with a hamstring strain. The initial reporting suggested Anunoby had avoided a serious injury and was considered day-to-day rather than week-to-week.

Still, New York erred on the side of caution, holding Anunoby out of Games 3 and 4 in Philadelphia. The Knicks won both, securing a sweep that granted them an extended rest ahead of the conference finals — a period that allowed Anunoby to heal up while the Cavaliers and Detroit Pistons contested a series that wound up going the distance.

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“Thankfully for [the Knicks], it was a sweep, allowed him to rest,” Charania said Monday. “And now, because they were able to get even more additional days, he’s going to be good to go for Game 1 tomorrow night.”

Anunoby returned to practice last week and was a full participant in New York’s on-court work over the weekend. He told reporters at the Knicks’ practice facility Saturday that he’s feeling good ahead of the team’s second consecutive trip to the NBA’s final four, and that this hamstring issue hasn’t felt as acute or problematic as prior injuries like the one he suffered in November or during the 2024 Eastern Conference semifinals against the Indiana Pacers.

“It didn’t feel as bad as the past when it happened,” Anunoby said, according to Brian Mahoney of the Associated…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/nba/article/knicks-og-anunoby-reportedly-playing-in-game-1-against-cavs-in-eastern-conference-finals-203950931.html

Author : Dan Devine

Publish date : 2026-05-18 20:39:00

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