I know we have seen so much chatter about how Carmelo Anthony needs to defer to others but to me last night’s game illustrated what I have always said–this is a man I will go with every day of the week because he is NEVER afraid.
By that I mean if he misses a shot in a big spot, it will NEVER make him reticent in subsequent tries at the basket. There are so many players in this league who have skills but if they missed a shot at the end of regulation that could have won the game, you might see them reluctant in the overtime session. That is not Carmelo Anthony. Like him or not, you gotta give him that.
He is smart enough to know this team has a premiere point guard in Derrick Rose who when healthy is as good as anyone in the sport at that position. He also had a budding star in Kristaps Porzingis and I stress the word BUDDING. He is obviously very skilled but still has things to learn which he will because he is a tireless worker and one of the most coachable players in the league.
The last two games have proven that late in the contest when the game is tight, teams will have to pick their poison with this trio of shooters and creators. Last night, it was a mixture of the three that did the trick but understand this–Rose and Porzingis both know what a talent Melo is and his penchant for hitting the big shot. Will he always hit it? Of course not. But the one thing I learned covering the NBA is you can NEVER hit the shot if you are unsure if you want to take it.
But lately I get the sense people want to bury the talents of Melo in favor of others. By people I don’t mean the Knick coaching staff–they are well aware of his ability to control a game. I just think the media & fans sometimes forget it but I can guarantee you the opposing teams don’t. In fact, Hornets Head Coach Steve Clifford lamented after the game that double teaming Anthony does not even keep him off the scoreboard.
Sometimes we all forget that but last night Carmelo let us all know that even though this team has options, Melo is a world class option and a winner. That’s right I said a winner…
Those of you who know me well, know that I NEVER follow the sheep in this town whether it was Strawberry, Ewing, Rex Ryan, or Bobby V. And Melo is a lot like those people–talented confident and underappreciated. Yes my first column on that fine website is very much what you all should expect. I will generally defer to the talented athlete over the twitter rants of those who ALWAYS look at the dark side.