Will Carmelo Anthony Reinvent Himself for the NY Knicks?

Anthony shot 10 of 12 from beyond the arc on his way to scoring 37 points, an Olympics record for the United States. More importantly than that—and even Team USA’s 156-73 trouncing—is how ‘Melo scored those 37 points.

Anthony wasn’t living and dying in isolation. In fact, it was quite the opposite. Again, the man shot 10 of 12 from three-point range. Most of Anthony’s makes came on catch-and-shoots, not extensive maneuvering. On this occasion, Anthony was thriving off the ball, exploiting defenses through his timely positioning as opposed to his trademark bully-ball.

But is this a sign of what’s to come for Anthony? Will he transform himself into more of an off-ball scoring threat to help legitimize the talent of his teammates? Is he going to reinvent himself for the Knicks next season?

Yes and no. Expect ‘Melo to embrace the art of moving without the ball next season, as the livelihood of New York depends on it, but as for reinventing himself, that’s an unpromising mystery.

The Knicks have too many offensive weapons to not attempt to space the floor. But Anthony’s penchant for isolation easily disrupts such a game plan. And while making quicker decisions may not suit Anthony’s preferred method of attack, he’s in no position to be catered to anymore.

New York is ‘Melo’s last chance to prove his name deserves to be uttered in the same breath as LeBron James’. He’s in the city he wanted, playing alongside the star-power he craved. There are no more excuses, and he knows that.

So yes, Anthony will embrace a more versatile role next season. However, that doesn’t prove he’s going to reinvent himself or his career.

Why not?

Well, the real question here should be how does he intend to reinvent himself in the eyes of everyone, including his own team? By scoring a ton of points?

You see, everyone already knows what Anthony can do on offense. He could go out and drop 100 points tomorrow and no one would be absolutely memorized to see him do it. He’s one of the greatest scorers in the game and putting up gaudy point totals is all in a days work.

For ‘Melo to truly reinvent himself, he’ll have to do everything we saw him do against Nigeria, on a consistent basis and in the process of leading the Knicks past the second round of the playoffs.

Anthony has been plagued by postseason shortcomings for nearly a decade, and that’s his greatest enemy, not the media, not his conditioning and not his preferred method of an offensive attack.

Until Anthony shows that he can both score and propel his team to victory in the playoffs, the reinvention of his career and persona are but merely musings.

No matter how many points he scores or records he breaks.