Former NBA player Carmelo Anthony played for several league teams, but he may always be associated with the New York Knicks. Anthony is revealing he almost returned to the Big Apple to play a second stint, per a new podcast episode of 7pm in Brooklyn with Carmelo Anthony & The Kid Mero.
Anthony donned the blue and orange from 2010-2017. The team never found championship success with Melo, but the Knicks did have some exciting clubs during his tenure. The most fun squad from the period may be when Jeremy Lin and the “Linsanity” phenomenon was running and gunning in New York.
Anthony also played for the Denver Nuggets, Los Angeles Lakers, Portland Trail Blazers, Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets. Melo never won a NBA championship, despite being one of the most dominant players in the league. He finished his career with more than 1,200 games played. He posted 28,289 total points in the NBA.
Carmelo Anthony's impact still touches the NBA
Anthony left the NBA after the 2021-22 season. While the star isn't currently playing in the league, he definitely has influenced several professional basketball players.
Anthony was seen court side this summer at the Paris Olympics, cheering on Team USA. In a semi-final game against Serbia, Serbian player and Atlanta Hawks guard Bogdan Bogdanovic seemed to be taunting Anthony in front of Team USA. The Serbian guard made hand gestures similar to what Anthony did as a player. Some members of the American team took exception to that, but Anthony seemed to not want to inflame the conflict.
Melo is also affiliated with New York not just for his play with the Knicks. Anthony played college in New York state at Syracuse. He stayed just one season with the school, and made the most of it. Anthony won a national championship in 2003 for the Orange. He was named the NCAA tournament's Final Four Most Outstanding Player that season. Syracuse basketball went on to retire Anthony's number.
While Anthony never won a NBA championship, he was a member of the Olympics men's basketball team in four different games. He won three gold medals, in Beijing, London and Rio. They mean everything to him.
“They both have their own separate meanings, but winning a gold medal, it's the passion, it's the pride that you have, not just for a city or a state, for a whole nation, for a whole country you're winning for,” Anthony said, per Yahoo Sports. “It's a different level of, I would say, pride that you have to have when you're wearing USA across your chest, or you're wearing Lithuania across your chest. It's a totally different feeling than Knicks, New York across your chest.”
Anthony stays busy despite not playing professionally. He's collaborating with a California winery on a red wine blend.
