During his career, Carmelo Anthony played for six NBA teams, but only two—Denver and New York—achieved legendary heights. He still has a great relationship with the Knicks, but he doesn’t get along with the Nuggets, who picked him in 2003. Anthony is also baffled as to why.
Melo was questioned if he knew that the Nuggets had thrown aside their “icy” relationship and issued a video package praising him on his career in an interview with journalist Rachel Nichols prior to his induction into the Hall of Fame on Saturday. Anthony wasn’t.
After being selected third overall by the Nuggets, the former Syracuse forward became by far the team’s greatest player. He was the Mile High City’s hero from 2003 to 2010. Anthony, however, stated that he would not be signing a new contract with Denver and insisted on a trade to the Knicks in order to win a title. Things took a turn for the worse at that point.
Anthony remembered that he needed a change at that stage in his career. He said: “You talking about a kid in the league, who’s 25, 26, 27 years old. Still trying to figure out their career, trying to figure out their way,”
“When you look back on it, I have to [love] the Denver Nuggets,”
“The City of Denver. That’s like, where it started to me. They gave me those keys at 19 years old to say here, do or die. My love for Denver will always be there. It will always be part of, like, that foundation of basketball,”
Melo stated that he still loves Denver and that it will always have a special place in his heart, without going into too much detail to defend his decision to leave the Nuggets.
