Team USA men’s basketball team was dangerously close to missing out on the much needed scoring & leadership of Carmelo Anthony.
Via USA Today, Melo admits he was seriously considering skipping out on the games, being that his best friends in the game; LeBron James, Chris Paul, and Dwyane Wade weren’t going, not to mention the high likelihood of something going wrong at the games with all the concerns going on.
But as strong as the feelings of self-doubt creeping in were, the pull of his US teammates turned out to be even stronger.
“They were saying, ‘It’s your time, your Olympics. You should take advantage of this opportunity,’ ” Anthony said. “Once the guys started reaching out and talking to me about that, it felt good to hear my colleagues want me to have that.”
Anthony, who has an opportunity to become the first US men’s basketball player to win three Olympic gold medals; was also coerced by another person he relies on for advice: Syracuse & US assistant Jim Boeheim.
About a week before the NBA finals began, Boeheim knew Anthony was on the fence about playing so he approached him with two big reasons why he should join the squad.
“I told him two things ‘You can help us. We need a veteran guy. Second, you’ve been losing for three years. Let’s get a good basketball experience. This is something you really should do,’ ” Boeheim said.
Melo agreed.
“I get a chance to go out there, be the leader of the team and enjoy it,” Anthony said. “It’s about going over there having fun, getting the winning feeling back and trying to get another gold medal.”
Make no mistake, Carmelo Anthony may have lost a step or two in the NBA, but he’s definitely sorely needed on this US team.
Plus, this is a good warmup for his season with the “superteam” Knicks.