Team USA Carmelo Anthony Was More Dangerous Than NBA Melo: Pau Gasol

Ten-time NBA All-Star, four Olympic medals (three of them gold), a spot on the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team, and more than 28,000 career points, Carmelo Anthony’s resume always speaks for itself. Now, as part of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2025, Anthony is finally receiving the recognition his career deserves.

Anthony’s journey spanned 19 NBA seasons with the Denver Nuggets, New York Knicks, Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets, Portland Trail Blazers, and Los Angeles Lakers. He was one of the game’s most prolific scorers, yet he retired in 2023 without an NBA championship. For many, that missing ring is the only blemish on an otherwise remarkable career.

But Pau Gasol believes Anthony’s legacy was forged just as much, if not more, with Team USA. Until Kevin Durant surpassed him in 2021, Anthony was the program’s all-time leading scorer. Gasol explained on ESPN why “Team USA Melo” stood apart.

Gasol, who went against Anthony during 2 of his Olympic gold medal matches as part of the Spanish national team, said, “He was always such a dynamic scorer. In USA basketball, those guys play shorter minutes than they usually do in their NBA teams. They have more specific role. So they can go and be really efficient.”

“In Melo’s case, it’s kind of more of that stretch 4 guy who could play in that 3 and 4 position but was really effective on the 4… Knocking down shots and giving their team a boost … I don’t know if most of the time he came off the bench or not but that was kind of my recollection. That score that came in from the bench and just lit it up,” Gasol added.

Gasol recalled Anthony embracing physicality with the national team, attacking the offensive glass, and sacrificing parts of his game to fit into a star-studded roster.

“I think that was the key when the USA teams really played at their best, when everybody was kind of giving up something about themselves. That’s true for every championship team … I think Melo again, not just was a prolific scorer but also a guy that was just very hard,” Gasol said, noting that Melo and Kevin Durant had a unique ability to marry their size to their skillset and their mindset.

For Anthony, the lack of an NBA championship will always be a footnote, but his three Olympic golds and reputation as one of the most effective players in international basketball leave no doubt about his greatness. In Gasol’s eyes, “Team USA Melo” wasn’t just different; he was better.