Carmelo Anthony follow-up to SLAM ranking: 'It was disrespectful'

New York Knicks superstar Carmelo Anthony isn't finished yet with SLAM after he was named the 15th best player in the league recently.

Carmelo Anthony is not willing to let the slightest bit of disrespect go unnoticed, as he followed-up on his comment on SLAM Magazine's Instagram account where they rated the star as the No. 15 player in the league.

The New York Knicks forward previously wrote “don't play yaself” in the comments section of the post and followed up his previous comments on Thursday when speaking to Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News.

Anthony said he doesn't use slights as motivation, but clearly did not agree with the ranking.

“It was disrespectful,” he said.

“It was just kind of surprising that first somebody sent that to me and the second I look on (my phone) that’s what I see,” Anthony said. “So it’s just more of kind of letting them know you lost some credibility with me.”

While Anthony declined to rank himself, Sports Illustrated had him worse in its preseason rankings at No. 24.

“I know. I remember that,” Anthony said. “I’ll let you guys rank me. Just not 15.”

The nine-time All-Star added that it would be unfair to judge him based on the lack of success the Knicks have had the last few years, having missed the playoffs the last three seasons.

“If they want to put that on me, it is what it is. I can’t control that,” said Anthony, who has not made an All-NBA team — which is voted on by the media — since 2013. “There’s so many things that come into play when it comes to team success, especially here in New York. So can’t control that.”

SLAM is a magazine with roots in New York that has had more than 200 issues printed since the start of its circulation in 1994. The magazine is the most recognizable basketball-only product in stands for the past two decades. A few of their editors have gone on to do some great work outside of print like Scoop Jackson, Ben Osborne, Lang Whitaker and Russ Bengtson.

While the list is a group effort from the editorial staff and not just one particular person, it's not uncommon to see superstars disagree with the rankings, no matter the source.

“Carmelo’s one of the top players in the league,” said Knicks head coach Jeff Hornacek. “And if he’s ranked lower, he’s going to go out there and prove himself. From a coach’s standpoint, we like when they rank him low for that reason.”