NBA legend Carmelo Anthony played the final year of his career with the Los Angeles Lakers at the age of 37. A productive player for Los Angeles, Anthony averaged 13.3 points in 69 games and could have played another year.
Having opted to retire after this season, Anthony recently revealed on an episode of his 7PM in Brooklyn podcast that he had received an offer from the New York Knicks to finish his career there.
Drafted by the Denver Nuggets in 2003, Anthony became a star in the city. That said, New York is the city he has been most associated with, and the NBA legend has admitted that it is where he wants to retire.
“My plan is going the way I planned,” Anthony said, recalling the opportunity to retire with the Knicks. “Coming back to New York, finishing in New York … This is a good team, I can still play ball, I can still help the team … My goal was always to come back here and finish here anyway.”
While the offer was there, Anthony revealed why he decided to retire.
“They had a roster spot,” Anthony said. “With all due respect, we sat down and had a real conversation. Look, here’s a spot. You could be on the team tomorrow, but this is the spot. I said no. No, I can’t. Not knowing when you’re going to play, not playing, I’d rather not go through that. I’m going to bow out gracefully. I just had a hell of a year in L.A. in my role.”
Melo reveals he turned down opportunity to return to Knicks
“I said, ‘No, no, I can’t. Not knowing when you’re going to play and not playing, uh, I’d rather not go through that. I’m going to bow out gracefully.'”
(🎥 @7PMinBrooklyn )pic.twitter.com/go3Pm4NySP
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) August 27, 2024
Not wanting to end his career in New York as a player who moves in and out of the rotation, Anthony decided to end his NBA career after the 2021-22 season.
“It’s a hell of a decline,” Anthony said. “To go from… So I had to stick with it. No disrespect. These are people that I really disagree with, you know, we have real relationships. So it was just like no, I can’t accept that. I don’t even think y’all wanted me in that role… That’s not the portrayal of Melo, the No. 7 of the New York Knicks, that we want people to remember.”
Nikola Jokic made unprecedented history at the Paris 2024 Olympics
Kevin Durant Reveals NBA Players’ Views on Nikola Jokic
Russell Westbrook reacts after being snubbed from viral NBA list
