As the final seconds ticked off the clock in the Golden State Warriors’ Play-In loss to the Sacramento Kings in April, Draymond Green perhaps had only one thing on his mind. Record as many podcast episodes as possible this summer.
It hasn’t even been a full month since the Warriors’ season ended. But Draymond Green is letting the world in on all his basketball takes. Especially his view on the New York Knicks’ all-time hierarchy of players.
Draymond Green Calls Out Jalen Brunson
"I have a hard time saying Jalen Brunson is higher up than Melo" 👀
– Draymond Green
(🎥 @TheVolumeSports )
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) May 9, 2024
“And I know there’s been this debate — is Jalen Brunson already one of the greatest Knicks ever and all these things,” Green said.”I have a hard time saying Jalen Brunson is higher up all-time than Melo because I came [into] the league underneath Melo. [He] was one of the superstars in the league when I came in.”
When Green entered the NBA in 2012, Carmelo Anthony was among the premier scorers in the league. Anthony had recently been traded from the Denver Nuggets to the New York Knicks. In what became an unprecedented trade in modern NBA history.
But it’s not hard to see why a young player like Green looked up to a superstar like Anthony. After Green’s rookie season in the NBA, Anthony took home the NBA Scoring Title and finished third place in the NBA MVP voting.
Among names like LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and even an older Kobe Bryant — Anthony’s name was in the discussion for the best in the NBA.
But as great as Anthony was throughout his career in the regular season, he quite frankly never had nearly similar success in the postseason. This is where Jalen Brunson’s name enters the discussion among the greatest New York Knicks ever.
Anthony’s Legacy Marred By Lack of Postseason Success
Carmelo averaged over 23 points and close to seven rebounds per game in his NBA playoff career. By no means was he a slouch in the big games. But despite his status as one of the NBA’s most crafty scorers ever, Anthony played just 83 postseason games over his 19 NBA seasons.
Of the 13 playoff series he’s suited up in, 10 of them came before he had gotten older and out of his prime. Of those 10 series, only five of them lasted at least six games. Anthony had two particularly worthy playoff runs in his career only one as a member of the New York Knicks in back 2012-13.
During the 2012-13 season, the Knicks finished second place in a top-heavy Eastern Conference, eight games below the big-3 in Miami. Anthony’s MVP-caliber season was good enough to lead the Knicks to their seventh-winningest season in franchise history.
Expectations were high, especially considering that the Knicks franchise had only participated in 18 playoff games since the 1999 season.
New York, despite being favored in the Semifinals, lost in the second round to the upstart Indiana Pacers. Led by emerging star Paul George. After dispatching the big-3 Boston Celtics in the first round, losing to Indiana was deflating.
In case Draymond Green a proven winner and multi-time champion has forgotten, Anthony never saw another playoff series let alone a win for the rest of his career in New York.
Jalen Brunson’s vs. Carmelo Anthony: Knicks Legacy
Is Brunson Already The Greater Knick?
With New York’s first-round series win against the Philadelphia 76ers this season, Brunson has already led the Knicks to more series wins than Anthony did in five-and-a-half seasons with the franchise. That’s stunning because Brunson has only been a Knick for less than two full years. Furthermore, the magnitude of the trade that sent Anthony to New York from Denver in 2011 makes this stat more surprising.
Knicks fans were a lot more hopeful and expected a ton more in the foreseeable future when their team landed Anthony in 2011. Compared to the lesser expectations when they landed Brunson in 2022.
In terms of longevity and a collection of individual accolades and awards with the franchise, Green is probably right. Anthony is greater than Brunson in New York Knicks history at this moment.
But having already topped Anthony’s postseason success with the franchise, Brunson has the opportunity to win the hearts of all Knicks fans. Especially if he can lead them to more playoff wins, maybe even an NBA championship one day.
