MIAMI — It’s a little more than an hour before tipoff between the New York Knicks and Miami Heat inside downtown Miami’s Kaseya Center when OG Anunoby emerges from a cloud of people. New York’s do-it-all wing is scheduled to begin his pregame warmup at 5 p.m. this Sunday. It’s two minutes before that when Anunoby, dressed in a team-issued hoodie and sweatpants, signals he’s ready to work.
As you’d expect with the soft-spoken, expression-hiding Anunoby, not many words are exchanged. No smiles. No laughs. He grabs a basketball and an assistant coach. His workout starts with ballhandling work at half court.
It’s been only two games, but Anunoby is off to a great start this season. He scored 24 points and grabbed a career-high 14 rebounds in New York’s season-opening win against the Cleveland Cavaliers. He followed that up with a trademark defensive performance against the Boston Celtics to help the Knicks move to 2-0. By all accounts, Anunoby appears primed for a memorable season in Year 9.
It all makes a little more sense when you watch him work. Anunoby’s workout simulates game reps very closely. After warmup shots, when he moves all around the outside of the lane just to get the body moving, he shoots 3s while a coach contests his shot. He does catch-and-shoot 3s, side-step 3s and shots on the move. Anunoby then occupies the time of two coaches, one who acts as a big man handing the ball off and setting a screen while another acts as a defender. Anunoby toggles between beating his coach off the dribble and getting to the basket and creating enough space to get a good look from 3. It’s 5:17, and Anunoby is sweating profusely. However, as the sweat drops, each shot goes in. His accuracy improved the longer the workout lasted.
In all, between the moment Anunoby emerged from the visiting tunnel to begin his pregame routine and the time he signed his final autograph and took his last picture before heading back into the locker room, his workout lasted 21 minutes.
Anunoby and the Knicks are about 40 minutes from taking on a Heat team that is playing as fast as anyone in the NBA. The All-Defense-caliber wing will have his work cut out for him as he looks to continue to build on his strong start.
Studying OG Anunoby for an entire game reinforces many of the ways his contributions aren’t always captured in a box score. (Sam Navarro / Imagn Images)
On this night, it seems like an ideal time to key in on and observe Anunoby, and only Anunoby, for an entire game.
First quarter
11:23 — It’s easier to appreciate Anunoby’s excellence when you’re focused on him and him alone, as made evident when he switches onto the Heat’s Norman Powell, gets screened and still denies the pass. Anunoby sees Kel’el Ware is about to set a screen on him, and he beats him to the spot, busting through the screen as if Ware isn’t even there. Miami tries to get Powell the ball, but Anunoby denies it. The Heat are forced to swing the basketball in the other direction and end up with a missed shot.
8:46 — Anunoby does one, two or three absurd defensive things each night. The first instance Sunday came when Bam Adebayo tried to throw a lob to Ware. Anunoby just snatched the ball out of the air. Anunoby’s eyes were on Adebayo the entire time as he dribbled with a little bit of space and stared down what he was about to do. Anunoby knew what was coming before Ware did and beat him to the high point.
6:57 — Anunoby gets the ball at the top of the key and takes a hard dribble toward the basket to force the defense to commit. He gets Ware, who does a good job of stopping the drive, off balance, then proceeds to take and make a stepback 3. It was a similar sequence to what Anunoby was working on with his coaches before the game. Anunoby has a bit more freedom in Mike Brown’s offense. We’ve seen it through the first two games. He often gets the ball while going downhill, whether off the dribble or by cutting, and creates opportunities for himself and others.
2:29 — Anunoby is guarding Nikola Jović but also has one eye on the nearby Jaime Jaquez Jr., who is trying to back down a New York defender. Each Jaquez dribble gets a bit closer to Anunoby, and he’s waiting to do his signature pounce from a help position. Jaquez gets close enough to where Anunoby feels comfortable going for the ball and nearly steals it. The ball is kicked out to Jović, and Anunoby is still able to sprint out, contest the shot and force an air ball.
0:00 — The 28-year-old forward ends the first quarter having played 10 minutes and scored 8 points. New York’s new-look offense helped him get a wide-open look from 3. He has created shots for himself. His willingness to cram passing lanes and take chances off the ball is perfect for Brown’s defense. Anunoby is starting this game and the season on the right foot.
OG from 3️⃣ pic.twitter.com/mGsHC0iibG
— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) October 26, 2025
Second quarter
9:01 — It’s subtle, but Anunoby does a 45 cut from the left wing as Jordan Clarkson dribbles through the lane. Anunoby’s moving through and exiting at the opposite corner opens a wide-open corner 3 for teammate Tyler Kolek. He didn’t make the shot, but it was a great offensive process for the Knicks. Anunoby’s cut basically acted as an assist because it occupied the attention of two defenders.
4:20 — Anunoby enters after his first lengthy absence on the bench. He comes into the game when Miami is in control with a 3-point lead. New York is in a bit of a funk and has no momentum. So, what does Anunoby do? He comes in and immediately puts pressure on Powell as he tries to set up Miami’s offense. Anunoby strips the ball and forces a jump-ball call in the process. His aggressiveness pumped some life back into New York, even briefly, as it scored immediately after his defensive play.
0:09 — Miami has a chance to take all of the momentum into the break and a potential 7-point lead. Instead, Adebayo pushes in transition, and Anunoby backpedals in front of him and sizes him up, waiting for him to launch in the air. Anunoby times his jump perfectly and swats the ball to Fort Lauderdale. It leads to a Mikal Bridges layup just before the half to cut the Knicks’ deficit to three. That’s absurd defensive play No. 3 for Anunoby. There’s still another half to play.
Third quarter
8:00 — A lot of the Knicks’ offense to start the second half has been centered around the Jalen Brunson pick-and-roll. Here, Anunoby finds himself in the corner for a kick-out from Brunson. Anunoby immediately lets the ball fly and makes it. It’s Anunoby’s eighth 3-point attempt of the night. Brown wants his players to get up more 3s, and Anunoby has taken that directive seriously. He leads the team in 3-point attempts, with this one being No. 24 on the season. Anunoby has been ready to shoot when getting a kick-out pass, which wasn’t always the case a season ago.
OG all over the place 🔋
📊 11 PTS | 4 REB | 3 STL | 1 BLK pic.twitter.com/89nXQvZsWb
— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) October 26, 2025
6:19 — Off a missed New York shot, Anunoby lurked and crouched in the background as a Miami player grabbed the rebound and turned his back to the Knicks defender. Anunoby noticed that the Heat player wasn’t aware of his presence and came in from behind to strip the ball. Anunoby’s ability to strike defensively when the offensive player doesn’t expect it is one of his greatest gifts. Offensive players are supposed to make defenders feel off-balance. Anunoby is the rare defensive player who often makes offensive players feel off-balance.
2:26 — Anunoby drives from the 3-point line using the low, sweeping Euro-step dribble that his buddy and former teammate DeMar DeRozan uses frequently. It gets Anunoby into the paint, but when the defender cuts off his lane to the rim, he has the recognition to kick it out behind him to a wide-open Guerschon Yabusele, who misses the shot. The process was good and exactly what Brown is looking for from his players. Anunoby gets two feet into the paint and sprays it out for an open 3. That’s the Knicks’ offense under this new staff.
0:07 — With the quarter coming to a close and Anunoby initiating some offense to close the quarter, the wing takes a screen at the top of the key and gets downhill on his right side. As he drives, he notices his lane to the basket closes quickly, and he kicks the ball out to a shooter in the corner. Anunoby doesn’t get an assist, as the shot from his teammate misses. However, Anunoby has processed the game well Sunday when attacking with the ball. He’s making the right decision more often than not. The Knicks, though, just can’t make a 3-pointer.
Fourth quarter
9:45 — Sometimes Anunoby’s aggressiveness works against him, like it did in this moment as he tried to suffocate and surprise Jović as he tried to post up Clarkson. Anunoby stepped over to help his teammate as soon as Jović touched the paint. He came close to getting the steal, one he’s done over and over again throughout his career, but he mistimed it a smidge and got hit with the foul. That aggressiveness is a big reason Anunoby is paid the way he is and so important to the Knicks’ title run. Can’t win every battle.
9:00 — Anunoby comes out of the game with Miami up by 10. I’m curious if this is the last time we’ll see Anunoby. The Heat have been in control for most of the second half and are on the doorstep of extending their lead significantly. Brown has said there will be days when he waves the white flag and concedes defeat to preserve his players. Maybe this will be the first time we see that.
6:09 — Even down by 18, Brown still isn’t ready to concede. Anunoby checks back in to help New York give one last push.
0:00 — Behind some high-level shot-making from Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns, the Knicks made it interesting when Anunoby and Towns checked back in. New York, though, couldn’t pull off the comeback and lost 115-107.
The subtleties are part of what makes Anunoby such a tantalizing player. Focusing on him for this game, specifically, highlights what separates him from a lot of his colleagues.
Defensively, Anunoby can see things before they happen. He knows how to get into a player’s body before the screen, to crash it and deny the ball. He knows the perfect time to pounce on a ballhandler who is a single pass away. His anticipation is special even by NBA standards. Offensively, he’s shooting the ball quickly and with confidence. He’s making better decisions with the ball in his hands. Furthermore, he’s helping generate offense by simply moving and cutting at the perfect time. Sunday’s game, though not statistically his best, showed a lot of why Anunoby should have more than just one All-Defense team to his name and why, offensively, he brings more than just what the box score shows.
The Knicks lost for the first time this season Sunday. Poor shooting and a lack of resistance at the rim on the defensive end hurt them. New York was out of sorts on both ends, which had not happened for a significant stretch in this short season. There’s another game Tuesday, though.
Anunoby gets dressed — a hoodie, shorts and sandals, all of which are appropriate for the Miami weather — grabs his bag and takes off for the bus. It’s another day at the office.