Carmelo Anthony is uncomfortable with the question, but he admits there is only one GOAT basketball – Michael Jordan.
Used New York Goodies – who spoke with CBS Sports on Thursday about his thoughts on the documentary film “The Last Dance” which consists of 10 parts that ended a few weeks ago – reluctant to choose between Jordan and his best friend LeBron James, but still supporting “His Airness.”
“You know, M.J. is GOAT. He is the greatest ever, “said Anthony, who is now with the Portland Trail Blazers.” We all know that and we all agree to it. Why can’t we say that, but also give LeBron the interest while he is here too?
“Why can’t we say,” M.J. very great, LeBron is great, Kobe is great. ‘We are not allowed to say these things today, because it is always this or that, and that is only our society – you have to choose one. “
Anthony – who has developed a relationship with Jordan since signing a contract with Jordan Brand in 2003 and has known and played with James since middle school – has good knowledge of the dynamic duo, but says it is difficult to compare the two because they are “the same two players completely different. ”
Anthony, 36, also said the GOAT debate prevented fans from having deeper excitement from the game.
Carmelo AnthonyNBAE via Getty Images
“I don’t like it,” he said. “And I say that because every time we do that, we fail to appreciate what we have in front of us. Whenever this comparison is made, is it anyone – old school versus new school – it seems, why can’t we appreciate everyone for what they bring to the game? “
Anthony also told CBS Sports that the documentary “The Last Dance” put a human face on Michael Jordan and demystified his career, especially for the younger generation.
“I think it’s shocking to people because they never know who he is as a person – they never know what kind of person he is. Everything is fair, ‘M.J. big. M. J. GOAT. God of Basketball. Black Jesus. Black cat. “That’s what they know,” Anthony said, “But they don’t know who he is. It’s just a myth. He is a mythical person, like a mythical creature.
“Nobody understands who he is or what he is. I think seeing him is like opening the lid and having the opportunity to just tell his story and people can hear his desires – what he likes, what he does not, and how he operates in his days, mentality. Most people like it. Some people are very surprised. And then there are people who hate it, because many times people hate the truth. “
Anthony, who has faced strong criticism several times throughout his career, said he could deal with Jordan who is sometimes misunderstood or portrayed negatively. But unlike Jordan, Anthony has not used insult as a direct motivation to prove his critics wrong.
“It’s about home, but then you also understand that in the end, there is nothing you can do if someone wants to make a negative narrative about you there,” Anthony said. “There’s nothing you can do, so what I’ve learned over the years is, whatever will happen will happen. Whatever people say, people will say. Don’t give them anything to talk about. You do your job and work hard “If you know you put everything into it, whatever others say doesn’t even matter to you.”
Speaking of criticism, one person in the NBA recently told Marc Berman of The Post that Anthony could become the Knicks’ Michael Jordan, but failed.
Charley Rosen, biographer / creditor of Phil Jackson and former assistant Albany Patroons, said if Anthony had embraced a triangle like Jordan finally, he and Jackson would find success together with the Knicks.
“Carmelo weakened it, said [Kristaps] Porzingis said nothing in public about how good the triangle was, “Rosen said.” Carmelo refused to run the triangle – which is why Phil signed it again: There was a lot of pressure from [owner James] Dolan But if Carmelo will run the triangle, he will open on the lower side.
“He had to pass and do this and run, but he finally had the whole side wide open – 16-17 feet from the basket. The defense would be too far to duplicate. He had an open jump shot and one or two dribbles from the basket. He became killer. He will be Michael Jordan. He is unstoppable. But Melo catches and shoots and doesn’t want to do anything else. “
