Carmelo Anthony recently took to ESPN’s First Take to share his views on his presence in the NBA after a bumpy season. The former Houston Rockets power forward said at one point, he felt unwanted when its general manager Daryl Morey said he was being let go.
“When somebody in power that tells you that they no longer need your services … I’ve been utilizing my services for a long time,” he said. “For you to tell me you don’t need that no more. I honestly felt that I was fired. I felt like [what] other people go through on a day-to-day basis. People get fired. I honestly felt like I got fired.”
Although Anthony said that the decision “was an ego hit. That was a pride hit,” he has no plans to retire anytime soon. “I know I can still play,” he admitted. In 2018, his run with the Rockets ended ahead of schedule after being traded from the Oklahoma City Thunder. According to Morey, “The fit we envisioned when Carmelo chose to sign with the Rockets has not materialized, therefore we thought it was best to move on as any other outcome would have been unfair to him.”
Despite the setbacks, the 35-year-old Olympian said he’s “in the gym every single day” and utilized his time away from the floorboards to “reevaluate” his career and life.
Anthony first entered the league in 2003 with the Denver Nuggets before departing for his hometown of New York City to play for the Knicks in 2011. In 2017, Anthony traveled back West to play for OKC before ending up with the Rockets.
“I was going to Chicago.”
—Carmelo Anthony responding to @stephenasmith on the perception that Melo chose money over winning pic.twitter.com/FokMZdD3qA
— First Take (@FirstTake) August 2, 2019
Carmelo tells @stephenasmith about his conversation with Chris Paul and James Harden after his time in Houston. (via @FirstTake) pic.twitter.com/tFes8csREc
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) August 2, 2019
“I felt like the game didn’t love me back at that point. … Now, I love the game too much to be away from it.”
–Carmelo Anthony on his free agency
(via @FirstTake) pic.twitter.com/rCXr0ZBu5z
— ESPN (@espn) August 2, 2019
“There’s too many people speaking on my name, and I don’t like that.”
–Carmelo Anthony on people saying he’s not willing to play off the bench pic.twitter.com/VALEQXW0sK
— First Take (@FirstTake) August 2, 2019
“I didn’t like how that went down.”
—Carmelo Anthony talks about getting released from the Rockets. pic.twitter.com/OxwyUBl2wd
— First Take (@FirstTake) August 2, 2019