OG Anunoby of the Knicks and Tyrese Maxey of the 76ers will play again on Tuesday.

NEW YORK Tuesday night’s games at Madison Square Garden saw the return of All-Star Tyrese Maxey and defensive star OG Anunoby for the Philadelphia 76ers and New York Knicks, respectively, adding strength to their already struggling lineups.

After injuring his head during a victory over the Dallas Mavericks on March 3, Maxey had to miss the previous four games in order to join the league’s concussion protocols. On the other hand, Anunoby hasn’t played since January 27 following surgery to remove loose bodies from his right (shooting) elbow.

The Knicks coach, Tom Thibodeau, responded, “A long wing, versatile, defense, shooting,” when asked what Anunoby would contribute to the New York roster. “Just pure play all around.

“He can blend in with everyone, which is one of his strengths. He has the ability to shoot, play off of players, dribble, handoff, move well without the ball, cut, and slash. He is also an excellent transition player. He can play in the two, three, or four positions, and he can play with your starters and your bench. He protects each and every one of the five people.

“He’s very unique.”

He’s also crucial to the Knicks, who have been playing for the past few weeks without their entire starting frontcourt due to injuries. Robinson hasn’t played since December following ankle surgery, while Anunoby and Randle haven’t played since the team’s victory over the Miami Heat on January 27.

“Just hasn’t had the contact yet,” Thibodeau said. “The conditioning is good, he’s shooting, doing individual work, that’s all good. He can do 5-0, that sort of thing. Light contact with the pads. That contact is what you would term controlled. You know what the move is, so you can brace yourself for it.

“There’s a progression to what you have to go through.”

The news on Robinson, however, seemed much more encouraging, with Thibodeau saying Robinson “should” be progressing to contact practice sometime soon.

“He’s on the court,” Robinson said. “He can run, jump, no contact yet. But that should be coming soon so he’s making really good, steady progress.”

Maxey, meanwhile, is back for Philadelphia after missing four games while in the concussion protocols. Sixers coach Nick Nurse said that there were no restrictions on Maxey’s minutes but that he’d be careful monitoring the young star in his first game back from the injury.

“Obviously, it’s good to have him back,” Nurse remarked. “I believe he should be alright, feeling rejuvenated and everything. He should be alright; we just need to check where he is at with his conditioning, rhythm, and other things.

“I probably won’t lose my mind. I will observe a little early and do some of that, but nothing official.”

Joel Embiid, the league’s most valuable player, is still sidelined for Philadelphia, according to Nurse, who notes that although Embiid has advanced to on-court training, there is still no timeline for his return or for him to advance further.

Since forward Jonathan Kuminga of the Golden State Warriors unintentionally landed on Embiid’s leg on January 31, the player has been sidelined. The 76ers are 10-20 this season without Embiid, but they are 26-8 when he plays.