Steven Cheah's Trust the Data returns with OG Anunoby pick

Cheah flew in for the Knicks' opener at the Garden, and he came in convinced the stars had already lined up for him.

Steven Cheah

@StevenCheah

On flight to NYC to attend Knicks banner night and for the first time in my life got a poop window. I couldn’t stop giggling and taking pics. I feel like this is very good luck! *proactively turned on sensitive pic for all the whiners and complainers

He picked a good night to show up. The Knicks raised 2 banners before tipping off with Philadelphia on NBC and Peacock: the 2025-26 championship and last season's NBA Cup. They were the first banners the franchise had hung at MSG since the 2012-13 Atlantic Division title. That's the scene Cheah chose to bring Trust the Data back in, and the rules are a little different this year. He's tracking every straight pick with wins, losses and units. Parlays stay out of the record and get their own weekly slot. He'll post picks most days but not every day, and the unit size will move around.

Steven Cheah

@StevenCheah

The NBA is BACK which means @TrustTheData is BACK! This season I will: - Track all straight picks (Ws - Ls and +/- units). *No parlays (though I will do parlays weekly separately) - Picks most days, but not every day, varying unit size And tonight’s pick is…watch video for it

The case is all on the graphic. Anunoby had cleared 6 boards in 6 of his last 7 games against the 76ers, he averages 8.14 rebounds on opening days, and Cheah flagged Josh Hart dealing with an ankle issue, which would mean more glass for everybody else. The graphic also says Anunoby will likely draw LeBron James, and that one holds up: LeBron signed with Philadelphia this summer, so this was his Sixers debut. Plus it's OG at MSG. The last time the Knicks played a game that mattered in that building, he won Game 4 of the Finals with a tip-in at 1.2 seconds.

Hoops is new ground for the Trust the Data brand this fall. Cheah's been on Barstool Gambling's Quick Picks all season, and up to now his comfort zone has been baseball. He said so on the October 15 episode, the day after a loss.

Barstool Gambling

@BarstoolGambling

“I'm gonna stick with my bread and butter so far this season, which is the MLB, even though I did lose last night.” – Steven Cheah

0:37

With baseball close to done, the record moves to the NBA, and the first sweat began right at tip. After 1 quarter the Trust the Data account had the update: Anunoby had 2 boards, which put him on pace, but he'd also picked up 2 fouls.

🧠Trust The Data🧠

@TrustTheData

@StevenCheah 2 boards in about 8 1st Quarter minutes for OG. Unfortunately, he had 2 fouls. Hopefully he plays through them.

Early fouls are the worst thing that can happen to a rebound prop. If Anunoby sits for most of the 2nd quarter, getting to 6 depends on how many minutes he gets after halftime. The result will be the first entry in a ledger Cheah has promised to keep honest, wins, losses and units, all season. 1 unit is a small opener, but it's the first number on the board, and a man who celebrated his flight with photos of the poop window is clearly counting on some luck.