Carmelo Anthony has no plans to pull a Chris Paul and withdraw from Team USA basketball.
He needs Team USA basketball.
Because the New York Knicks suck.
From Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News:
In this instance, there was something different and topical: the Olympics. So Anthony perked up at the chance to discuss winning for a change.
“From a morale standpoint as a player, if you’ve been through the things I’ve been through the past couple of years you want to feel what that success feels like. You want that success,” he said. “So the Olympics for me is great timing.”
Way to belittle every other country partaking in the basketball portion of the Olympics, Melo.
Seriously, though, there’s nothing wrong with these comments. They make sense and are by no means out of line. The only story here has yet to written: How will the Olympics impact Anthony’s view of the Knicks, assuming he hasn’t waived his no-trade clause by then?
It can work one of two ways: Either Melo gets his fix for success and isn’t in such a rush to leave New York, or the taste of winning compels him to seek greener, more championship-ready pastures.
And if Team USA somehow whiffs on winning a gold medal, well, then Carmelo Anthony may just abscond to a remote island in the middle of nowhere, as he contemplates his fate with the Knicks and NBA in general, wondering whether or not he’s doomed to keep falling short for the rest of his professional career.
Or something.
