OG Anunoby

OG Anunoby is best known as a defender, but Sports Illustrated says that early in the 2026-27 season he is showing the Knicks a new side of his game: passing. In one game against Boston, his passing rate was the highest it had been in two years [6].

From Missouri to the draft

Anunoby was born on 17 July 1997 in London, United Kingdom [1] [5]. He is listed at 6-7 (2.01 metres) and 240 pounds [1] [5]. He played high school basketball at Jefferson City High School in Missouri, where he was named a Missouri Basketball Association Class 5 All-State player and a finalist for Mr. Basketball in Missouri [1].

He then played college basketball at Indiana [1] [5]. In his last season there he played 16 games, limited by a knee injury that required surgery [8]. He waited to hear his name at the June 2017 draft, and Toronto selected him 23rd overall in the first round [8] [1].

Toronto and the steals lead

Anunoby spent his early seasons with the Toronto Raptors [7]. The NBA lists him as having helped Toronto win the 2019 championship [1]. His time in Toronto ended in December 2023, when the Raptors traded him to New York [7].

In 2022-23 he led the whole league in steals, averaging 1.7 per game and finishing with 128 in total [1]. That season he was also named to the All-Defensive Second Team, alongside Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo [2].

The December 2023 trade

On 30 December 2023 the Raptors traded Anunoby to New York [7]. The Knicks sent RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley to Toronto, along with a 2024 second-round pick, and received Anunoby, Malachi Flynn and Precious Achiuwa in return [7].

NBA.com wrote that the Knicks were giving up "two of their top offensive players" in Barrett and Quickley, and that the deal should provide a needed boost to their defense [7]. The article pointed to Anunoby's steals lead from the season before as the reason [7].

Back on the All-Defensive team, then two Knicks titles

Anunoby was named to the All-Defensive Second Team again for the 2025-26 season, this time as a Knicks player [3].

Anunoby was with New York when it won the 2025 NBA Cup. The Knicks beat San Antonio 124-113 in the final on 16 December 2025 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas [9]. Anunoby scored a game-high 28 points on 10 of 17 shooting, including 5 of 10 from three-point range, and NBC New York wrote that he "chose a fantastic game to go above and beyond" [9]. San Antonio was also the team the Knicks beat in the 2026 Finals [4].

New York beat the San Antonio Spurs 94-90 in Game 5 of the 2026 NBA Finals on 13 June 2026, in San Antonio, their first championship since 1973 [4]. Jalen Brunson led the Knicks with 45 points in that game [4]. The league's live report of the clinching game notes that Anunoby made one of two free throws, "pushing it to a two-possession game" [4].

The early-season passing question

Much of the pre-season talk about Anunoby concerned whether he could become an All-Star in 2026-27 [6]. Shaz Ally wrote the Sports Illustrated piece that reports the early-season passing story [6]. Ally also notes that Anunoby is right-hand dominant and has gotten better at drawing fouls [6].

According to the piece, Anunoby typically ranks very low in passing among his teammates and other players, and his passing turnover rate last season sat in the 14th percentile among wings at his position [6]. Against Boston he nearly recorded a triple-double in a loss, and his scoring had been less hot than during the Knicks' playoff run [6].

Ally's own view of Anunoby's future role is more cautious: "I don't believe Anunoby will ever become a very impactful passer, but he can play within the system well enough to serve as a strong connector" [6]. The article also says he is right-hand dominant and has gotten better at drawing fouls [6]. The sources on this page do not include a direct comment from Anunoby on his passing, so this page does not add one.

He wears number 8 for the Knicks, and the NBA lists him with nine years of experience [1]. The sources here do not give his contract terms or full season statistics, so this page leaves those out.