If you have followed the NBA at all over the last ten plus seasons then you are sure to have heard one or all of the knocks on the New York Knicks power forward Carmelo Anthony. A couple of them are: “Anthony is a ball hog who does not pass.” “He does not play hard on the defensive end.” Let us not leave out my favorite one “Iso-Melo is a black hole where defenses go to die.” Now, I am not going to sit here and say Anthony has always been a team first player or that some of these critiques have not applied throughout the years. What I will say is that when it comes to this season, absolutely none of these apply to Anthony.
The Evolution of Carmelo Anthony
The Knicks have already won more games this year then all of last season and we are only at the halfway mark. Anthony and the way he is working with his teammates is a major reason for this. He leads the team in scoring averaging 21.6 points per game. He is doing this while only putting up 17.8 shots per game. Both of these numbers are the lowest dating back to his second season in the league.
Besides the scoring, there has been other ways that Anthony is contributing on the court. For somebody that has been labeled as a player that is strictly a one-way player who does not play defense, Anthony has made an emphasis on changing that this season. He has even told his coaches to hold him responsible and to call him out during film sessions if he is slacking on that end. Anthony is averaging 0.9 steals and 0.6 blocks per game this season while showing much more effort and commitment defensively.
Anthony is currently averaging career highs in both rebounding and assists. His 7.6 rebounds per game are second on the Knicks behind rookie Kristaps Porzingis who is pulling down an average of eight boards per contest. Anthony has always been a good rebounder so this should not be a surprise. The statistic that has most people talking are the assists. His 3.8 dimes per game are second on the team only to Jose Calderon’s four per game.
An example of how Anthony has bought into the team first mentality was during a game against the San Antonio Spurs on January 8th. The game came down to the wire with the Knicks down 100-99 as time was running out. Anthony drove to the basket and drew a double team. Instead of doing what everyone thought he was going to do and force up a shot, he kicked the ball in the corner to an open Jose Calderon. The shot ended up not dropping and the Knicks lost the game, but this play more than any other shows the change in approach of Anthony’s game.
It is not that he has been against passing the ball to teammates in the past, it is just that maybe he now has the teammates who are skilled enough for him to trust. Anthony is truly looking to embrace the “power forward” position and feed the hot hand each game whether it is Porzingis, Arron Afflalo, or anybody else on the team. If Anthony stays healthy and keeps up this attitude then New York has a very good chance of making the playoffs and possibly even making a run.
