Can’t offer a personal testimonial but from a rehab perspective it will be important to work on your mechanics and technique when jumping, squatting, planting, etc. Malpositioning of the joint ex. valgus/varus posture can put excessive stress on the joint. Having a coach/physio or someone assess you can be helpful. In terms of mobility work a good place to start will be making sure to restore knee range of motion. Abnormal motion of the knee can lead to worsening OA symptoms where there is additional stress on the joint. You can focus on improving your ability to bend and straighten the knee as well flexibility for increased motion. One that is often helpful for alleviating symptoms for those with knee OA is flexion gapping. Check out the first mobilization in the following video:
https://thereadystate.com/2011/01/episode-147-oa-of-the-knee-mobility-as-diagnostic/

As well as working on terminal knee extension:
https://thereadystate.com/2012/12/knee-pain-got-full-knee-powerrange-of-motionpotential-terminal-knee-extension-part-1/
https://thereadystate.com/2012/12/knee-pain-got-full-knee-powerrange-of-motionpotential-terminal-knee-extension-part-2/
https://thereadystate.com/2012/12/knee-pain-got-full-knee-powerrange-of-motionpotential-terminal-knee-extension-part-3/

Aside from the knee joint itself you’ll want to be working above and below the joint, working on the soft tissues as well as restoring any stiffness in the hip and ankle joints.

On top of mobility work, the scientific research strongly supports that resistance training is the best management of knee OA. Working on restoring hip and quad strength in particular has shown to be protective of the knee and were best for symptom management. This may require some activity modification as you mentioned knee bending can be aggravating. Try and find variations that allow you to load the joints without aggravating the knee i.e. pushing/pulling heavy sleds,stiff leg DL, box squats with the shin vertical, etc.