A team with an elite player like Carmelo Anthony should be in playoff contention, not struggling to find the right head coach, treading water just to avoid being cellar-dwellers in the Eastern Conference. At least, that’s what Carmelo Anthony gets to thinking when he gets pensive about his status in the league. According to a NY Daily News report, Anthony had a feeling that mirrored “envy” during a press conference Friday morning when he mulled over the unfortunate demise he’s suffered the last three seasons–all of them losing–as a New York Knick.
“I don’t think envy is kind of the right word,” started Anthony, “I do look at my peers and say, ‘Damn, what am I doing wrong? I should be there.’ There was one point in time where they were looking at me like that. Made (the playoffs) 10, 11 years straight.” Anthony was referring mostly to his tenure with the team that drafted him, the Denver Nuggets, where Melo was a Western Conference playoff staple.
Though it shouldn’t scare Knicks fans into thinking that Anthony is ready to renege on his commitment to New York and try his hand elsewhere, it’ll be interesting to see how his line of thought develops as the Knicks fall further away from being mathematically eligible for playoff contention and closer towards another disappointing season. Melo reportedly refused to waive his no-trade clause when the Boston Celtics came nosing around looking for a deal for Anthony, and he turned down the opportunity to play alongside Derrick Rose, Jimmy Butler and Pau Gasol in Chicago in 2014, two teams that he could easily make a run at the Finals with. The question with Anthony isn’t loyalty, but rather is he loyal to a fault?
