Should I defoliate or remove the small buds on the outside and inside? Do you have any tips or suggestions that I could implement?

I wouldn't remove budsites. I'm from the "pro defol" camp but You got plenty of space to LST to open things up if your branches aren't too stiff. If they are too stiff and you decide to remove leaves, just don't go overboard. In your 2nd photo you can see where the bad congestion is in the middle of your big plant. Just thin out the center of your plant a little, don't strip out everything like you'll see some people do.