Carmelo Anthony is one of the longest-tenured NBA players in the league today. Melo entered the league in 2003, alongside fellow draft class stars like LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh.
18 seasons later, LeBron and Anthony are the only stars remaining from that historic draft class. Anthony has bounced around a lot in the NBA, especially over the last few years of his career. The former All-Star now finds himself on a stacked Los Angeles Lakers squad alongside his close friend LeBron James.
Anthony’s career started off strong in Denver, with them even becoming a championship contender during his final years in the team. But after a falling out with the franchise, Melo went on to join the New York Knicks, where he would spend 7 seasons.
Melo was the crown jewel for the Knicks, but they didn’t find much success with him. In fact, the Knicks only won a single playoff series during Anthony’s stint in there. He eventually got traded to Oklahoma City to team up with Paul George and Russell Westbrook.
But the trio didn’t click, which led to Melo once again being traded to the Rockets. His stint with the Rockets got cut short and soon enough, he was out of the league. Come the 2019-20 NBA season, the Trail Blazers took a risk and signed Anthony to a 1-year, non-guaranteed deal.
Their faith in Anthony paid off, as he proved to be a solid scoring option coming off the bench. Melo spent 2 solid seasons with the Trail Blazers and helped them reach the playoffs on both occasions.
But now Melo is ready for his ultimate goal; winning an NBA championship. There is one statistic that Melo is hoping to erase soon enough. Carmelo Anthony is the only NBA player to score more than 27,000 career points but not win an NBA championship or an MVP.
Carmelo Anthony is currently the only player in NBA history with 27,000+ career points without a ring or MVP. pic.twitter.com/jxxOjDeOXI
— StatMuse (@statmuse) March 20, 2021
Anthony has his best chance yet with the Lakers. Much like his role in Portland, Melo will most likely come off the bench and provide scoring when the All-Star players like LeBron, AD, and Russ will need to rest.
If Anthony can get consistent minutes for the Lakers, he can make a real difference in their play. And his presence on the bench will be a big bonus for the Lakers come playoff time, as he provides great depth as a scorer who can play at LeBron’s small forward position.
