Watch Game 3 of the NBA Finals in Oakland on Thursday morning (2am) live on Sky Sports Arena
Wednesday 5 June 2019 17:40, UK
Toronto Raptors forward OG Anunoby is back in the frame to feature for his team in the NBA Finals after sitting out to recover from an appendectomy performed towards the end of April.
The Brit, who was born in London and is of Nigerian descent, could take part in Game 3 against the Golden State Warriors if Toronto head coach Nick Nurse wishes to shake up his rotation and deems him ready.
It's been quite a turnaround both roster-wise and in terms of success levels for the Raptors this year.
Last year, in Anunoby's first season in the league, Toronto were swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the second round. That was a team anchored by the guard tandem of Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan with Jonas Valanciunas at center.
This season, they have made it all the way to their first NBA Finals with a much different cohort. Kawhi Leonard arrived from the San Antonio Spurs in a blockbuster trade last summer and the team moved to bring in veteran center Marc Gasol, with Lowry the sole remnant of last year's experienced trio.
It's quite a turnaround and team president Masai Ujiri has been vindicated for gambling on Leonard, with only one year of his contract at Toronto guaranteed, bagging the Klaw's fellow 2014 NBA title winner Danny Green to boot.
Anunoby respects both last year's Raptors and this year's team but, speaking in an exclusive interview with Sky Sports, he identified one key factor which may have contributed to their increased success.
"Probably the difference is we have more players with championship experience," said Anunoby. "Both good teams - good, talented teams.
"Danny, Pat (McCaw) and Kawhi, they've played in the Finals before, they've won championships.
"They tell about what they see, adjustments they've made in the past, stuff that we can do. Even Serge (Ibaka) has been in the Conference Finals [as has] Marc Gasol, [they're] guys who have been there so that helps."
His comments come after former fulcrum DeRozan earlier this week claimed the Raptors wouldn't be there with a chance to win it all were it not for his years of sacrifice building the groundwork for a title.
DeRozan, a four-time All-Star with the Raptors, told Bleacher Report in a video interview that he should get a bit of credit for Toronto's climb.
"Honestly, I don't think I even said this - I probably said it to my own inner circle - but if it wasn't for all the years and groundwork that I did before then, none of them things would've been possible," DeRozan said.
"Yes,I fought, I sacrificed, I pushed the limits to where I had to be the sacrificial lamb. You just have to sit back and understand, like, you know, you are the reason so many things was even possible."
DeRozan averaged 21.2 points, 6.0 rebounds and 6.2 assists in his debut season with the Spurs.
Game 3 takes place in Oakland in the early hours of Thursday morning (2am) live on Sky Sports Arena.
