OG’s D for the New York Knicks is being recognized by the NBA.
OG Anunoby was one of 10 men named to the All-Defensive Team for the 2025-26 on Friday, securing such an honor for the first time in his career. Anunoby appears on the second team next to Bam Adebayo (Miami), Scottie Barnes (Toronto), Dyson Daniels (Atlanta), and Cason Wallace (Oklahoma City).
Working through his second full season in New York, Anunoby has been widely lauded for his two-way talents. This regular season saw him pull in four defensive rebounds a game as well as 1.6 steals next to 16.7 points a game. Anunoby is on the second All-Defensive for the second time, previously earning the honor after leading the Association in steals as a member of the Toronto Raptors in 2023.
“He does a lot of different things that people don’t see on that end of the floor for us and for other teams he played for,” Knicks head coach Mike Brown lauded late in the regular season, per SNY. “But more importantly, his versatility is just off the charts and you can do a lot of things with your defense because of him. In my opinion, he deserves First Team All-Defense this year — and hopefully the powers that be will see it that way, too.”
Anunoby emphatically declared that he “should” win Defensive Player of the Year this season, though he did not land a single vote in the race won by Victor Wembanyama (San Antonio). His work this postseason has shown voters exactly what they missed out on.
Anunoby is one of the primary reasons why the Knicks are two wins away from a conference title: his net rating of 21.7 ranks fifth among playoff participants that have appeared in at least five games and averaged at least 20 minutes and his 17 total steals are tied for eighth despite missing two games in the second round with a hamstring issue. He had three blocks and a steal in Tuesday’s 108-93 triumph over Cleveland, giving the Knicks their ninth consecutive victory and a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference Finals.
“He’s kind of always been really great at D, and then the shooting came, and now he’ll rebound heavily when they need him,” Philadelphia 76ers head coach and second round victim Nick Nurse said, per Ian O’Connor of The Athletic. “His cutting game’s gotten a lot better. I think his starting and ending drives have gotten better as well.”
“He just kind of gets better year after year, and he’s just a hardworking guy. When I had him, he was really fascinated with the art of shooting. That was really cool to see him dig into that and take his own journey on it to improve, and he’s a guy you cannot leave open.”
Wembanyama headlines the first All-Defensive Team next to Rudy Gobert (Minnesota), Chet Holmgren (Oklahoma City), Ausar Thompson (Detroit), and Derrick White (Boston).
Anunoby and the Knicks return to action on Saturday when Game 3 shifts the series to Cleveland (8 p.m. ET, ABC).
