Portland Trail Blazers forward Carmelo Anthony just passed Hakeem Olajuwon for 11th place on the NBA's all-time scoring list, showing the world that his career is far from over contrary to what people thought when he was out of the league for more than a year.
After leading the Blazers to a narrow 125-121 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves, Anthony addressed his latest milestone in his postgame interview, noting that he's just happy to be enjoying the game after a rough patch in his career.
“I'm still here, I'm still playing, I'm still going, I'm still enjoying the game, I'm still happy.. that's all that matters,” Melo said after the milestone.
Entering Saturday's contest, Carmelo Anthony needed 18 points to surpass Hakeem Olajuwon's record of 26,946 points. In what was a memorable night for the Blazers star, he ended up with 26 points on 8-of-14 shooting off the bench. He also recorded six rebounds and two steals as he led the way for Portland in the tightly contested affair.
It's truly incredible to see Melo continue to thrive in the NBA after several teams refused to sign him following his exile from the Rockets. He has found a home in Portland, and he is now paying the Blazers back for putting their trust in him.
Next on the all-time list for Melo is Elvin Hayes, who has 27,313 points. After the contest against the Wolves, Anthony is 358 points away from cracking the Top 10 list. If he continues to keep up his average of roughly 13 points a game this 2020-21 season, there's a chance he could make it before the campaign ends.