“How Bad Do You Want It?”: Carmelo Anthony Reveals How Will Smith Pushed Him for ’08 Olympics

During the 2004 Olympics, Team USA suffered a horrible fate as arguably the world’s best basketball squad was relegated to a bronze medal. Two years after the Olympics humiliation, the team was humbled yet again during the 2006 FIBA World Cup, where they once again finished out of the top two. Two years after that debacle, the best players in the NBA, including Carmelo Anthony, formed a strong USA squad that was dubbed the “Redeem Team”. 

Considering the high pressure on the team to avenge the humiliation of the 2004 Olympics and the 2006 FIBA WC, Anthony needed some motivation to shine bright on the international stage. Quite surprisingly, Bad Boys actor Will Smith gave him the necessary motivation to redeem the pride of USA basketball. 

During a recent episode of Carmelo Anthony’s 7 PM in Brooklyn Pod, Will Smith and Martin Lawrence joined the 2008 Olympic Gold Medalist to promote their new movie Bad Boys: Ride or Die. Midway through the show, Melo recalled how the Hollywood superstar helped him overcome his doubts before the Beijing Olympics.

The former Nuggets superstar went to Smith’s house to talk to him before the games. During their interaction, Smith gave Melo a much needed wake-up call. Anthony revealed,

“We were talking about the ’08 Olympics and you asked me, ‘Do you want it? How bad do you want it?’ And I said, ‘I really don’t know if I wanna do this.’ And you told me, ‘Your career is in your hand. If you don’t take this moment and do what you have to do with this moment, this moment will change your life.’”

This conversation paid dividends for Anthony, who became a much more assertive player and helped USA nab the Gold Medal during the 2008 Olympics. He tallied 11.2 points per game and made numerous key shots for the Kobe Bryant-led squad. Anthony even played key roles in the next two Olympic medal runs for the USAMNT.

Carmelo Anthony had a solid international career

Carmelo Anthony is regarded as one of the best international players in basketball history. To this date, Melo remains the highest scorer in USA Men’s Basketball history. He accumulated 336 points in 31 games, which translates to 10.8 points per game, per Basketball Reference.

His best Olympic performance came during the gold-medal effort in the 2012 London Olympics. In 8 games, he put up 16.3 points per game on a highly impressive 53.5% shooting from the field. His career-high and the USAMNT’s all-time high also came during the London Olympics, when he bundled 37 points in a win against Nigeria.

Thanks to Will Smith, Anthony was able bury a lot of doubts. Not only did he achieve international success, but just a year after Smith’s encouraging words, he’d take his Denver Nuggets to the 2009 Western Conference Finals. The fire lit by Smith also helped him land the 2013 scoring title.