In both of the New York Knicks' games thus far without OG Anunoby, Knicks head coach Mike Brown has gone to rookie forward Mohamed Diawara for a short stint in the first half over options with some NBA experience like Pacôme Dadiet, Tyler Kolek, Kevin McCullar Jr., or Tosan Evbuomwan.
The Knicks seem to have caught the bug going around the NBA, with both Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby suffering injuries in the last week. Brunson returned from his ankle sprain quickly but Anunoby has another week before his hamstring is re-evaluated.
Brown spoke honestly but positively about Dadiet, the second-year wing, during the preseason. Thus far in Anunoby's absence, however, the coach has turned to the taller and lengthier Diawara despite his lack of experience relative to the vast majority of rostered NBA players.
Is Diawara climbing the ranks or just most in-need of reps?
It is possible that Brown would turn to Dadiet in a playoff scenario and that he has simply deemed Diawara, the team's least experienced player by default, the talent that could benefit most from experience.
With these small amount of reps early in the regular season not meaning much in the grand scheme of things, it's feasible that Brown doesn't see ensuring that everyone on the roster has NBA experience before the end of the season as having a very high opportunity cost.
However, Brown's choice of Diawara might have more to do with what he provides the team on the court than anything else. The Knicks' new leader on the sideline told reporters after the team's narrow road win against the Dallas Mavericks that he played Diawara because Anunoby was out.
Mike Brown says he's trying to get Mohamed Diawara some minutes to keep the Knicks long and athletic while OG Anunoby is out with the hamstring injury.
— Kristian Winfield (@Krisplashed) November 20, 2025
Whether or not Diawara remains Brown's back-up of choice amid Anunoby's absence is unknown. The 6'9 forward has shown flashes of his length being functional defensively and an ability to drive-and-kick it to open teammates. He has yet to play enough to even have the chance to be either consistent or inconsistent on either end of the floor.
The rookie has appeared in eight games, averaging just 0.9 points in 2.3 minutes per game in those cameos. However, this is just the beginning for Brown and his rookie. It's clear some baseline level of trust has been established, with the coach feeling comfortable enough in his defensive capabilities to give him NBA playing time. The Frenchman certainly gives the Knicks size at the wing and forward spots that they don't have outside of Anunoby. He just has to keep using it.