Carmelo Anthony, one of the NBA’s all-time leading scorers, announced his retirement from the league on Monday.
He played in the NBA for 19 seasons, most notably with the Denver Nuggets and the New York Knicks, and was a member of 10 All-Star teams, six All-NBA first-teams, and earned three gold and one bronze Olympic medals. Anthony was also named to the NBA’s all-time 75th-anniversary team and is ranked ninth all-time in scoring.
Carmelo Anthony’s Tenure with the New York Knicks
Anthony’s illustrious basketball career began during his freshman year at Syracuse in 2003 when he won the NCAA national championship. The Nuggets drafted Anthony third overall, and he instantly exploded into the NBA scene, averaging 21 points per game. That year, Carmelo Anthony lost the Rookie of the Year competition to LeBron James.
From 2003 to 2010, Anthony helped lead the Nuggets to the playoffs every year he was in Denver. During those seven seasons, he averaged 24.8 points per game and 6.3 rebounds per game, earning four All-Star selections. In 2009, Denver advanced to the Western Conference Finals thanks to Anthony’s 27.2 points per game but was defeated by the eventual champion Los Angeles Lakers.
After Denver fell in the first round of the playoffs to the Utah Jazz the previous season, a schism reportedly developed between Anthony and the Nuggets during the 2010-11 season. Carmelo Anthony is said to have requested a move after refusing to sign a contract extension. Denver eventually relented and dealt Anthony to his hometown Knicks — Anthony was born in Brooklyn before moving to Baltimore when he was eight years old — as part of a major three-team, 13-player trade that included the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Carmelo Anthony’s Career Journey and Accomplishments
Wilson Chandler, Danilo Gallinari, Raymond Felton, Timofey Mozgov, a future first-round selection, two future second-round picks, and Cash were traded to the Nuggets, while Eddy Curry, Anthony Randolph, and Cash were traded to the Timberwolves. Carmelo Anthony, Renaldo Balkman, Shelden Williams, and Anthony Carter were acquired from Denver, and Corey Brewer was acquired from Minnesota.
Anthony appeared on seven All-Star teams and averaged 24.7 points per game while in New York. The Knicks made the playoffs in each of Anthony’s first three seasons but only won one series. After clashes with then-team president Phil Jackson, he eventually requested a trade during the 2017 summer. The Knicks dealt Anthony to the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for Enes Kanter, Doug McDermott, and a second-round pick in 2018.
Anthony spent the following five years of his career on four different teams. He was with the Thunder for one season before being moved to the Houston Rockets. Carmelo Anthony was transferred to the Chicago Bulls two years later but was discarded and signed with the Portland Trail Blazers. Anthony signed with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2021 after spending two years in Portland. He surpassed Moses Malone for ninth place on the league’s all-time scoring chart and became the Lakers’ ninth player to reach 28,000 career points.