Playing basketball at the highest level is a thing not a lot of people have experienced. According to Kenny Smith, only 5100 people have suited up for an NBA team in the league’s 76-year history. Among these 5100 players, there are a few that have made their mark on generations to come. LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, and Chris Paul all fall into this category. Back in 2012, there was a serious debate before LeBron James won his 3rd MVP. Chris Paul also had a strong case for himself, but his ‘Banana Boat’ buddy Melo picked LBJ instead.
Advertisement
The 2012 MVP wasn’t the first time LBJ took an award from one of his banana boat mates. During the 2003-04 season, Carmelo Anthony won Rookie of the Month every month, but LeBron ended up winning the coveted ROTY award. This was 8 years before the MVP debate between CP3 and LBJ, so one may think Melo had moved past the ROTY award, but that wasn’t the case.
Carmelo Anthony picked LeBron James over Chris Paul as 2012 MVP
Back in 2012, both Chris Paul and LeBron James were having incredible years. LBJ averaged 27.1 rebounds, 7.9 rebounds, 6.2 assists, and 1.9 steals, shooting a career-high 53.1% from the field. On the other hand, CP3 averaged 19.8 points, 9.1 assists, 3.6 rebounds, and a league-best 2.5 steals. Statistically, LBJ is the clear winner. However, Chris Paul had a larger impact on his team’s win shares, and output in crunch time.
While on an appearance on First Take, Carmelo Anthony was naming his Top-5 Players in the NBA at that time(2012). Not only did he not pick CP3 in the list, but he also said Bron was having an MVP season. This astounded Skip Bayless, who was rooting for Melo’s buddy Chris Paul.
The turnaround Chris Paul brought to the Clippers was nothing short of incredible. However, the way LeBron James was dominating, it was hard to see anyone else win MVP, and that’s exactly what happened.
Dwyane Wade supports Carmelo Anthony’s ROTY appeal
Almost 19 years after LBJ won ROTY over Carmelo Anthony, Melo spoke about the same and said he deserved to win the award. Later, when Dwyane Wade appeared as a guest on Club Shay Shay, he backed what Melo had said.
DWade believed, if not ROTY, Melo should have at least been the co-ROTY along with LeBron.
“It’s an argument. He had an argument then, and he has an argument now. Take nothing away from LeBron, but let’s look at what Melo did over there in the Western Conference, okay…Co-Rookie of the Year.”
It’s clear that Wade didn’t want to step on the toes of any of his banana boat crew members. However, the numbers spoke for themselves. If Grant Hill and Jason Kidd split a ROTY award, so should have LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony.
