OG Anunoby will take home 2026 NBA Finals MVP award, Draymond Green predicts originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
With the New York Knicks taking a 3-1 lead over the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Finals, the Larry O’Brien Trophy appears headed to Manhattan.
But who takes home the Bill Russell Trophy for Finals MVP remains more contentious entering Saturday’s Game 5 in San Antonio.
Though Knicks star Jalen Brunson is the odds-on favorite to win the award, many fans and analysts believe OG Anunoby has been the best player in the series thus far — including Draymond Green.
“I see a lot of people saying OG Anunoby is the current favorite for the Finals MVP. And I must say, I agree,” Green said on Friday’s episode of “The Draymond Green Show.” “I think he’s been the most consistent. I think, you know, he’s made pivotal plays. He had the block and the bucket to close out the game in Game 4. Jalen Brunson was incredible last game, but I think the first three games, he wasn’t great, was shooting a lot of shots at a low percentage.
“And OG has just been constant. And it hasn’t been like averaging 14 points, 16 points — he’s averaging 24 points on the series, 65 percent from the field, 55 [percent] from three, playing the defense he’s playing, guarding [Victor Wembenyama] at times in the series. I think OG Anunoby has a decent Game 5, and [the Knicks] win Game 5. I think OG Anunoby is the Finals MVP.”
The Anunoby vs. Brunson debate feels a bit reminiscent of the 2015 NBA Finals, when Andre Iguodala was named MVP over Steph Curry. Like Brunson, Curry boasted better stats than Iguodala, but voters recognized and rewarded Iguodala elevating his game on the biggest stage and making a massive defensive impact — the same could be said of Anunoby this series.
Perhaps that could be the reason for Green’s opinion on the matter this time around, already having seen a similar storyline play out a decade earlier.
Regardless, we’ll find out soon enough whether or not Green’s prediction comes to fruition.
