NEW YORK — The Knicks could be without OG Anunoby for Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
The forward has been diagnosed with a right hamstring strain ahead of Friday night’s game in Philadelphia and is considered day-to-day.
Anunoby appeared to tweak his leg with about three minutes left in the Knicks’ 108-102 win over the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 2 at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday night.
On the same possession in which he seemed to come up hobbled, Anunoby missed a dunk attempt, then signaled to the Knicks’ bench that he needed to sub out.
He left the game with 2:31 remaining and did not return.
The Knicks did not have an update on Anunoby’s status after Wednesday’s win, with coach Mike Brown saying at his postgame press conference, “He looked like he was hopping. I have not talked to [the] medical [staff] yet.”
The Knicks boast a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven playoff series, but any missed time by Anunoby would serve as a blow.
Anunoby scored 24 points on 9-of-17 shooting with five rebounds and four steals in 37 minutes in Wednesday night’s win.
He is averaging 21.4 points per game this postseason — second on the Knicks to only Jalen Brunson (27.4).
Anunoby, 28, is shooting 61.9% from the field, including 53.8% on 3-pointers, in the playoffs. His 7.5 rebounds per game rank third on the team.
The 6-7 forward finished 10th in NBA Defensive Player of the Year voting in the regular season and has continued to excel on that end this postseason.
Miles “Deuce” McBride replaced Anunoby in Wednesday’s fourth quarter and finished out the game.
“He’s one of the best two-way players in the league, so it’s tough to replace that, but you don’t replace him with one guy,” McBride said. “Everyone is going to have to step up.”
McBride, who scored four points in 21 minutes off the bench in Game 2, averaged 12.0 points per game in the regular season over 41 appearances, including 15 starts. The 6-2 guard said he would be “extremely comfortable” in an increased role should Anunoby miss time.
“I feel like the coaching staff trusts me,” McBride said. “I know my teammates trust me and I trust myself overall. So if that happens, I know I’ll be ready.”
Anunoby has a history of leg injuries.
Two years ago, Anunoby suffered a left hamstring strain in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Indiana Pacers, then missed the next four games. He returned for Game 7 of that series, only to check out for good after five minutes.
That injury proved to be a turning point in that series, as the Pacers rallied back from an 0-2 deficit to win it in seven games.
And this past November, Anunoby sustained a left hamstring injury that caused him to miss nine games.
“We’ll see what it is, but next man up,” Knicks forward Mikal Bridges said of Anunoby after Wednesday’s win. “That’s really it.”
The ill-timed injury comes amid a torrid stretch for Anunoby, who scored 29 points on 11-of-14 shooting in the Knicks’ series-clinching Game 6 win over the Atlanta Hawks in the first round, then added 18 points on 7-of-8 shooting in Monday night’s Game 1 victory over the Sixers.
“At that size and athleticism and IQ, feel, two-way player — you want a guy like OG on your team,” Brown said ahead of Game 2. “And as we continue to move along, you really get a better sense, or a better feel, of his feel for the game.”
