The New York Knicks were one of the NBA's most exciting teams when they added Carmelo Anthony in 2011. He, along with J.R. Smith, Amar'e Stoudemire, and Iman Shumpert were on the team for a few years.

That group is the subject of the “Knickstape,” a highlight reel of the 2012-2013 team. More recent editions of the Knicks have more playoff success, but the “Knickstape” team defined an era for the team.

Anthony was the leader of that team and reminisced on his experience with Smith on “7pm in Brooklyn.” If that team had won the championship, Anthony told Smith that he would have retired that year.

“I would’ve retired, I’m going to tell you that right there, as soon as I won,” said Anthony on what he would have done.

Anthony led the team into the second round along with Stoudemire, the first and only time he won a playoff series with New York. The team didn't have much postseason success, but Shumpert and Smith provided plenty of highlights thanks to their otherworldly athleticism.

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Anthony dove deeper into the team, saying that the roster was a tight-knit group. To him, it was one of the few times that he felt the team truly had great chemistry.

“That Knickstape era for me was the second time in my career that I felt real team energy, connectivity, and we all aligned from the front office to the 15th man on the bench,” Anthony said.

“From a connection standpoint, we felt like we was in championship format of like personalities and just everybody coming together bonding. It was deeper than basketball; ain’t no other team moving like this.”

Knicks fans would have been sad to see Anthony end his career in his prime. However, retiring directly after winning a championship is a special opportunity for professional athletes. Despite his lack of postseason success, Anthony is a franchise legend in New York.