Carmelo Anthony has not been seen in an NBA uniform since he was deactivated by the Houston Rockets last November.
After just 10 games of the season, Rockets general manager Daryl Morey informed Anthony of the decision. This came the night before the Rockets faced the San Antonio Spurs on November 10, 2018. During an appearance on ESPN’s First Take with Stephen A. Smith, Anthony spoke about the situation.
“He came in and basically said, ‘Look, your services are no longer needed,’” Anthony said of his conversation with Rockets general manager Daryl Morey. “I was like, ‘What? Hold up. What the hell are you talking about? … You telling me I can’t make a 9-, 10-man rotation on this team?’”
Is Carmelo Anthony Being Blackballed by the NBA?
Former Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes just debuted their podcast entitled All The Smoke, and during the first episode, they discussed a variety of different topics, including if Carmelo is being blackballed from the league.
“It’s the same situation they did to a lot of the players. They put him into a situation that they know he is not going to succeed and make it look like he can’t play no more, he is a cancer, and just push him out. Once they get you to that point, where it looks like your a cancer, or you can’t play no more. There is a mass text that is sent out to every team, “Don’t F*** with him,” said Stephen Jackson.
‘Melo [Carmelo Anthony] has never been a company guy, and he is going to speak his mind and march to the beat of his own drum. They don’t like that at times, there’s no question if anyone says that Carmelo is not better than 60 percent in the NBA right now, they are a d*** lie. And it is personal, Melo definitely belongs in the NBA. He definitely got blackballed; it ain’t no secret as good as this guy is Melo belongs in the league,” said Jackson.
Stephen Jackson says there’s been a mass text sent out around the NBA that says, “Do not fuck with Carmelo Anthony.” 😳
Former Rocket Royce White Agrees
“‘Melo is absolutely being blackballed,” White said, via Fanatics View. “He’s one of the realest in [the league]- He’s given too much to the game for them not to allow him to play or for them to kind of culturally just make an agreement that he’s not good enough anymore. All of us here that played the game at the highest level know how good Melo is.”
“We know that there’s no way that the Lakers would go out and sign Jared Dudley and not sign Carmelo Anthony,” White said. “And another question is, when a guy like LeBron is walking around out here like he’s the face and voice of the players, how is he letting his banana boat brother hang out there in the wings and then go sign Jared Dudley and not Carmelo.
“If anybody watching this thinks that Jared Dudley can hold Carmelo’s jockstrap, I’ll slap you.”
ESPN NBA Analyst Jalen Rose Thinks the Same
On August 22, 2019, on the episode of ESPN’s Get was asked if he thought Carmelo Anthony is being blackballed by the NBA.
Yes, I do (think he’s getting blackballed) because there are 450 people who get paid to play this sport this year. I would say even if you didn’t like his game because it’s mid-range based and felt like he didn’t fit, he could still have a roster spot between 11 and 15,” Rose said on ESPN’s Get Up.
“Blackballed comes from the fact that there are 450 jobs, there are 30 NBA teams, he deserves to be on a roster. He should have a job, but he doesn’t.”
Anthony’s Former Coach Thinks he can Still be Effective in the League
“I think so, I mean, I always enjoyed my time with Carmelo; obviously, his skill set is terrific. I think there is a lot of talk that Carmelo doesn’t want to change; it has nothing to do with that at all,” Billy Donovan told Fanatics View.
“I think Carmelo is trying to find his way where he can be an effective player, and he is willing to do whatever, but when you’ve played a certain way, and at the level that he’d play at for so many years, that’s what made him special.
So, I think he has alway be willing how to figure out different ways to play. I don’t think it has ever been; he didn’t want to do that. I think he is trying to carve out a niche where he can help out a team.
He was a great guy and was great to work with, and I enjoyed being around him. He was great in our locker room, total pro, and I thought he was a class guy. I think the conversations we had were direct and honest. So, I do think he can help somebody,” said Donovan.
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Carmelo Anthony Not Being in League Is Personal, Says Former Player