Carmelo Anthony thinks his label of a "Bad Defender" is unjustified – NBA Update
When Carmelo Anthony was traded to New York Knicks midway through last season, Denver Nuggets head coach George Karl did not hesitate in saying that his team will now be better off on defense.
With Carmelo leading the team, the franchise no doubt achieved many milestones and got into the playoffs almost every season. However, it is also a well documented fact that the Bronchos chocked at the crucial times and there is
a reason for that – Carmelo just doesn’t have the intensity of superstar on the D.
The now New York Knicks star, is without the slightest ambiguity, one of the best offensive players in the league and has single handedly won Denver, and most recently Knicks, many games over the years.
However, when it comes to defense, Carmelo has been a disappointment. Carmelo has always struggled to guard players near the post and his casual approach towards defense has been criticized from time to time.
However, the superstar begs to differ.
When asked in a recent interview with Sports Illustrated, whether he takes it personally when people label him as a bad defender, he bluntly replied
“Absolutely, absolutely. I understand where it came from. I know why it was said, but that’s neither here nor there”
Carmelo clarified that he was just a small part of the defensive ideology at Denver. The Nuggets are not a team that thrives on defense and Anthony said that it was the whole playbook setup, which made him perform the way he did
on the defense over the years;
“Look, defense is about energy and focus at the end of the day. I can’t see any team or any coach just coming out and saying, ‘Oh, we’re just gonna come out and run every play at Melo.’ I never saw that before. I think [Karl] was
being strategic in what he did and what he said. In Denver, we weren’t always known for being a defensive team, but that’s because we were running up and down the court. Like I said, I take it for what it’s worth. I store it in the back of my mind”
Carmelo’s explanation does hold weight, but it does not overrule the fact that he has a lot of ground to cover on defense, before he can match up with the likes of LeBron James and Kevin Durant – the alpha small forwards in the
league at the moment.
An increase in the back court intensity is also what the Knicks would want. Now that Anthony has reliable support in the form of Amare’ Stoudemire and Chauncey Billups, and a defensive mentor in new assistant coach Mike Woodson,
there is no excuse left for Anthony, not to raise his defensive game.
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