00:00Every great defense has a foundation, a player who sets the tone, possession after possession.
00:06For the New York Knicks, that player is OG Ananobi.
00:09And this season, he hasn't just been good defensively, he's been one of the most impactful
00:14defenders in the entire NBA.
00:20When you talk about all NBA defense, the conversation usually starts with big men, rim protectors,
00:26and shot blockers.
00:27But this season, OG Ananobi has shown that being an elite defender isn't just about protecting
00:32the rim, it's also about controlling the game.
00:35To help break it all down, I spoke with the Dean of Knicks Film School, Jonathan Macri.
00:39So J-Mac, when you watch OG Ananobi, what stands out the most to you about his defensive impact
00:46night to night?
00:46I don't think anyone is ever going to have an easy offensive possession if OG Ananobi is
00:52the man guarding the ball.
00:54And I think when you're looking at the types of teams that the Knicks are trying to get
00:59past to make the finals or whatever, and the sorts of players that those teams obviously
01:04have, just the knowledge that whether it's Jalen Brown, whether it's Cade Cunningham, anyone
01:09else you want to list, that they're going to have their work cut out for them on any given
01:14night.
01:15So just to have a player like that, that has that level of impact on the opposing teams,
01:20whether it's their best player or second best player.
01:22And then just, of course, at the same time, the off ball impact, if he's helping off of
01:27the weak side corner, you're going to get a genuine rim protect if somebody penetrates
01:33the defense.
01:34The combination of a high floor, but also a high ceiling, which I think is something that's
01:39rare in the league today.
01:40The first thing that jumps out is impact.
01:43When OG is on the floor, the Knicks' defense looks different, more connected, more disciplined,
01:48more physical.
01:49He's a great defender, and he does a lot of different things that people don't see on that
01:56end of the floor for us and for other teams that he played for.
02:02But more importantly, his versatility is just off the charts.
02:08And that impact isn't just visible, it's felt.
02:11He's not just defending his man, he's anchoring the entire system.
02:16And then there's who he's guarding.
02:18Night after night, OG takes the hardest assignment, the best player, the primary scorer.
02:23And more often than not, he makes their job a lot harder.
02:27That mentality, that willingness to take on the toughest matchup is what defines elite
02:32defenders.
02:33So, J-Mac, you just mentioned the word rare.
02:35How rare is it to have a defender like OG who can guard multiple positions at an elite
02:41level?
02:41How rare is that?
02:42I think what makes him rare for me is the fact that you are getting, you know, let's
02:49say top five perimeter defense with obvious versatility, you know, one of the few, if
02:58there's any even other players in the league who could guard the opposing team's point guard
03:01and the opposing team's center.
03:03But I think what makes OG Ananobi stand out about a lot of his competition is that you're
03:07getting the offensive impact at the same time as the defensive impact.
03:11But if you look at just the numbers and you look at, all right, well, who's making that
03:15two-way impact for the Knicks?
03:16Among year-long rotation players, he's the only one on the Knicks roster that is in the
03:2375th percentile or higher for on-off in both defense and offense.
03:28So you are getting this top five defensive impact on one of the end of the floor.
03:33And yet he is, I would argue, pretty comfortably their third most threatening offensive player
03:39at the other end.
03:40But this is where OG separates himself, versatility.
03:44He can guard quick guards, physical wings, and hold his own against bigger players.
03:49And that flexibility allows the Knicks to do everything defensively, switch, rotate, and
03:55recover.
03:55But he's not just locking guys down.
03:57He's making plays, deflections, steals, plays that turn defense into offense.
04:03He doesn't just stop possessions, he ends them.
04:05When you look at the all-defense NBA landscape for this season, do you believe that OG has
04:12a legitimate shot to make first team this year?
04:14Legitimate shot?
04:16Absolutely.
04:16Because I think you're always looking for who are the guarantees.
04:20So right now, again, assuming there's no games played stuff that becomes an issue,
04:24we're looking at Wemby, we're looking at Chet Holmgren, and I would actually put Rudy Gobert
04:28into that same category.
04:30After that, there's two spots that I think are wide open for someone else to step in.
04:36Now, do I think OG is a guarantee for a first-team spot?
04:39No, only because I think there's legitimate competition between him and, you know, in no
04:45particular order, Scotty Barnes.
04:47Both of the Thompson twins have a great case.
04:49You look at Lou Dort on Oklahoma City, and even he's kind of been forgotten about this
04:54year, but Dyson Daniels is still doing his thing.
04:56Same thing with Evan Mobley, you know, former Defensive Player of the Year award winner.
05:00I would put OG on the team along with Asar Thompson.
05:05If I was a voter for this award or for this team, and obviously I'm not, I do think the
05:11offensive impact should be a tiebreaker.
05:13Because the fact is that Asar Thompson, Lou Dort, those guys are not being asked to do
05:18on offense anywhere close to what OG is being asked to do on a nightly basis in terms of
05:24how important his three-point shooting is and his dribble drive game.
05:28So I think tie goes to the better offensive player, and I would have OG on my first team.
05:33When you put it all together, the case is hard to ignore.
05:36He guards the best players, he anchors one of the league's best defenses, and he does it
05:40every single night.
05:41The only real question heading into this season was availability.
05:46Missed games have impacted his case before, but this season, OG has reached the 65-game
05:50minimum to be eligible for the NBA's end-of-season honors.
05:54Look, when he's on the floor, there are very few defenders in the association who can do
05:59what OG Ananobi does, and that's what this award is supposed to represent, the best defenders
06:05at the highest level.
06:06And this season, OG Ananobi has been exactly that.
06:10If defense is about impact, versatility, and taking on the toughest assignment night after
06:15night, then OG Ananobi has a real case to take home his first all-defensive honor since
06:202023 when he made the second team.
06:23And this year, his case is even stronger to be first-team all-defense.
06:34Thanks.
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