Carmelo Anthony re-upped with the Portland Trail Blazers this season, but he'll be relegated to a bench role with the team. While Melo prepares for his new role, CJ McCollum expressed his admiration with how the veteran scorer has handled seeing his role altered this late in his career.
“I think there's a misconception of who he is and who he stands for as a person,” the Blazers guard said of Melo, via Dylan Mickanen of NBC Sports. “I think at this stage in his career obviously he's more than capable of being a starter but he's trying to figure out what's best for the team. What's best for us to make a run and I think that shows his maturity and how he's kind of progressed as a player and how he's comfortable with his legacy and what he's been able to accomplish. There's no doubt he's a Hall-of-Famer but I think his willingness to do that just shows that he's extremely mature and is in a different phase of life in terms of his mentality and what he's thinking.”
Regardless of where he has played, Carmelo Anthony has always been a starter in the NBA. He began his career as a starter for the Denver Nuggets before taking the lead for the New York Knicks. He also starred for the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Houston Rockets.
Even last year, when he joined the Blazers, Anthony started for the majority of the season for Portland. However, while he spoke to the front office, they thought it would be best if he comes off the bench in the upcoming season.
Some future Hall of Famers would brush off the idea of not starting, electing to continue their career elsewhere. Despite it being a difficult choice, Anthony seems to be content with his new role on the team, which is earning respect from his teammates.
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