TORONTO — Monday night was emblematic of the big trade from nearly a year ago.
RJ Barrett led all scorers.
He was on the brink of completing a revenge game.
But then the player the Knicks got instead — OG Anunoby — came up with the game-winning play, a block on Barrett with 26 seconds left.
The Raptors lost.
The Knicks won, 113-108.
Barrett finished with 30 points but couldn’t the one that mattered most, driving to the hoop with the Raptors’ trailing by two in the final seconds and getting swatted from behind by Anunoby.
Karl-Anthony Towns, who was struggling for most of the night, knocked down the two most important shots — a lay-up off a pretty feed from Jalen Brunson for the lead with 36 seconds remaining, then the dagger trey following Anunoby’s block on Barrett.
It saved the Knicks (14-9) from an ugly defeat against the struggling Raptors (7-18).
And it cut off a big night from a former Knick.
Barrett has been producing this season at a career-best rate, a consequence, he said, of playing in a faster-paced system with more on-ball opportunities.
Barrett revealed ahead of Monday’s game he was thrilled about the trade when it happened.
He’d been catching hints from the Knicks that he was no longer in their plans.