Jim Boeheim Defends Carmelo, Rips the Rest of the Knicks

Carmelo’s former college coach Jim Boeheim feels similarly, but he decided to take it a step farther. When asked if Carmelo could lead this group to a title, Boeheim had some not-so-flattering things to say about Melo’s teammates, according to Syracuse.com.

“Not on that team,” Boeheim said (when asked if Anthony could win an NBA title in New York). “He did what he can do. He played very well the final game. Everybody’s killing him, but Tyson Chandler just didn’t try to catch the ball. He threw him the ball and Tyson Chandler went like this [Boeheim dodged in a chair in his office in the Carmelo K. Anthony Center]. He was wide open. He should have been looking for the ball right here. Kenyon Martin should have been looking for the ball. They both went like this [Boeheim dodged again]. Carmelo gets turnovers and the announcers aren’t smart enough to even think, ‘Well, the guy should try to catch the ball.'”

Regarding JR Smith and Ray Felton:

“Tyson Chandler claims he never gets the ball. He doesn’t try to get the ball,” said Boeheim, who coached Chandler when he was a member of the 2012 United States Olympic team. “He had two points and Hibbert had [21]. What was the difference in the series? Raymond Felton was 0-for-7. Lance Stephenson had [25] points. They’re going to blame it on Carmelo? I told him when he went to New York, they’re going to blame it on you.”

“They’re getting nothing but older,” Boeheim said. “They’re not going to get better. They need two more options. Chris Paul would be the guy. … No one else can help them. They’re not going to beat Miami. Indiana’s not going to get worse, they’re going to get better. It doesn’t look good.”