Despite being a Hall of Fame-worthy player in the league and for USA Basketball, Carmelo Anthony can still be considered underrated in many ways. The 10-time All-Star doesn’t get his due credit for taking the game forward with his nearly two-decade-long career. However, Blake Griffin tried to highlight those forgotten aspects of Melo’s game during his appearance on 7PM in Brooklyn.
Advertisement
During a segment on the podcast, when he talked about what it was like to guard Melo, Griffin said that the New York Knicks legend’s first step was unmatched, and that it doesn’t get enough attention. The 35-year-old added that guarding Melo felt a “little disrespectful” because he was so good.
He said, “I think what’s overlooked is your first step.”
He recalled playing against Melo in his rookie year and being full of confidence while guarding the forward. What he soon realized was that Anthony was too quick for him to even understand what just happened on the floor.
He said, “I would blink and all of a sudden I’m like, ‘Oh sh*t.’ I would like have to go and contest.”
Griffin said that as time went by, guarding Melo didn’t become any easier. He tried different techniques such as closing the distance between the two so he doesn’t blow past him or maintaining a decent distance to be in position to contest his shots. but nothing seemed to work.
Griffin added that he had similar experiences whenever he played against Dirk Nowitzki.
What made Carmelo Anthony a great scorer
Melo had stiff competition in the league from the year he was drafted. After all, he was a part of arguably one of the best draft classes of all time. He joined the league alongside the likes of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh. However, he still managed to lead his rookie class in scoring, averaging 21 points per game, which was also 12th best in the entire league.
The foundation was set for him to be a great scorer and in the coming years, Melo just kept adding to his reputation. He averaged 20+ points in 14 consecutive seasons and was the 2013 scoring champion. His incredible range is what made him a standout while he competed against some of the best players of all time.
Melo had an exceptional mid-range shooting ability, he could post up small defenders easy buckets, and was believed to be a nightmare in iso plays. A true three-level scorer, there’s no denying that Carmelo Anthony is one of the greatest scorers the game has ever seen.
