The defending champion kept his comments short and polite when asked about Philadelphia's revamped roster, but his calm tone told the story.
OG Anunoby does not give reporters much to work with, and that is part of what makes his interviews worth paying attention to.
When asked about facing the 76ers on opening night, a game that has been hyped as one of the biggest regular-season matchups in recent memory after Philadelphia added LeBron James and Jaylen Brown to a roster that already included Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey, Anunoby kept things simple.
"They're a great team, a lot of great players and a great coach," Anunoby said. "So, it'll be fun."
Anunoby has talked this summer about being ready to move on from last season's championship run and focus on winning another one, and his approach to the 76ers question fits that mindset perfectly.
The Team
The Knicks have earned the right to be calm about this.
They won the NBA title last season, and the core of that team is back.
Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, Mikal Bridges, and Anunoby are all returning, and the group has a chemistry that was built through a long playoff run that ended with a parade through Manhattan.
Anunoby said the team's mentality is levelheaded, describing the group as similar in personality and adding that they are taking things day by day after the win.
He also noted that nothing could have prepared him for what winning a championship in New York was like until he went through it, which speaks to how grounded the locker room feels heading into the title defense.
There is a difference between a team that is satisfied after winning it all and one that is hungry to do it again, and everything Anunoby has said suggests the Knicks fall firmly into the second group.
Opening Night and Beyond
Philadelphia's roster is loaded with talent, and the addition of LeBron James to a team that already had Embiid and Maxey makes the 76ers a real threat to come out of the Eastern Conference.
Anunoby acknowledged that by calling James one of the all-time greats and saying that any opportunity to play against him is an honor, especially as he gets older and his remaining seasons become fewer.
But Anunoby did not spend any time worrying about what the 76ers look like on paper.
The Knicks have been through enough together to know that rosters do not win championships by themselves.
The championship run last season was not built on one or two good playoff series.
It was a four-round test that pushed every player on the roster, and that shared experience creates a confidence that cannot be replicated by assembling talent in free agency.
New York opens the season as the defending champion and Anunoby sounds like a player who is comfortable with the target that comes with it.
The question for the rest of the league is whether anyone can knock them off.
Philadelphia has the talent to try, but the Knicks have the experience of knowing what it takes, and that tends to matter more in a seven-game series than individual star power.
