Philadelphia Phillies v New York Mets | Jim McIsaac/
OG Anunoby spoke with FanSided and Yanks Go Yardon behalf of Essentia Water, prior to a Times Square stunt on Tuesday where he attempted to recreate his iconic Game 4 NBA Finals tip-in. He was there to talk ball, but we snuck a baseball question past the goalie (mixed metaphors for ya).
The man with the Hand of God is willing to give a hand to any New York sports team in the throes of competition, and in our mind? That’s dynamite. During the New York Knicks’ Post-Championship Glow Tour around NYC, OG Anunoby threw out a first pitch for the Mets, while Elston Howard’s relative Josh Hart and Jalen Brunson – The Roommates themselves – chose the Yankees (still looking for one of those custom Knicks in 5 Yankees hats, if anyone’s got one).
Anunoby, as a big baseball card collector, reportedly grew to prefer the Mets as a kid (Carlos Delgado, Jose Reyes, what have you), leaving his first team, the St. Louis Cardinals behind. Reyes then invited him to throw out the first pitch this summer after Topps amplified the story post-title, and things spiraled from there.
Has Anunoby’s fandom ever gotten … you know … awkward in the locker room? Have Hart and Brunson ever tried to convert him? As it turns out … not necessary; OG is for the people. He just wants New York to have a good time.
“I’m not a diehard [Mets fan],” Anunoby said with a slight laugh. “I like baseball. I like all teams. I support everyone.”
So, nothing funky if Aaron Judge is courtside and tries to dap you up?
“No. What’s wrong with the Yankees? All of them are great,” Anunoby continued.
Knicks’ OG Anunoby surprises fans at the Essentia Supercharged Court in NYC. 🏀 pic.twitter.com/rJKzDjTLyi
— New York Post Sports (@nypostsports) August 18, 2026
OG Anunoby’s heart is with the Mets, but he has no problem with the Yankees
The Knicks truly are New York City’s great unifier. Mets and Yankees fans spent the summer entwined together in bliss, watching Anunoby, Hart and Brunson snap a 53-year championship drought most of us believed would never end. Anunoby doesn’t want to see that crosstown accord end. What’s wrong with the Yankees, after all?
Now, it’s time for the 6’7″ star to get back to work – defending an NBA title, a phrase New Yorkers never thought they’d read. With the Mets’ youth movement streaking and the Yankees’ metronomic consistency reigning, perhaps another city-wide parade guarantor – a Subway Series – isn’t terribly far around the corner, either.
