“This dude was fast, fat and could shoot, ain’t nothing you can do” - Andre Igoudala believes Carmelo Anthony was the hardest player to guard
On "Point Forward," Andre Iguodala, Evan Turner and Draymond Green heaped praise upon Carmelo Anthony. They agreed that, in his prime, Anthony was one of the toughest players to guard. Iguodala said:
"I told somebody, if you can guard Carmelo Anthony, you can guard anybody in the league. And people always say, who's the hardest guard? I'm like Melo. They'd be like, what? Listen man, 'this dude was fast, fat and could shoot. Ain't nothing you can do'."
Evan Turner added his own experience having to guard Anthony, stating:
"He scored 12 straight on you and the ball was in his hand for like 1.2 seconds ... it was the quickest and I'm like 'Damn he doing my OG in' you know what I mean? But it didn't matter it's straight talent, and I'm like 'If you can score on Iguodala, you cold'"
NBA Superstar Carmelo Anthony is one of the greatest players of all time and one of the greatest scorers the league has ever seen. He will almost certainly be a first-ballot Hall-of-Famer.
Picked third overall in the 2003 NBA draft, Anthony has built himself an impressive resume. He's a 10x All-Star, an NBA scoring champion, a member of the NBA's 75th Anniversary Team, a two-time second-team All-NBA selection and has four third-team All-NBA selections.
While Anthony scored off the dribble, off the catch, and had immaculate footwork, Green shed light on his ability to draw fouls, stating:
"I've seen Melo get the ball three or four posessions in a row, and do the same exact move and put the onus on the referee to call the foul."
Looking back at Carmelo Anthony's career
Success came early for Carmelo Anthony as his one year at Syracuse was highlighted by an NCAA championship and a final four Most Outstanding Player award. He was then selected third-overall by the Denver Nuggets in the 2003 NBA draft.
In his very first season, Anthony managed to lead the Denver Nuggets to their first playoff appearance in eight years, averaging 21.0 points per game.
Anthony reached the playoffs with the Nuggets seven years in a row, but exited in the first round in six of those years. In 2008-09, the Nuggets reached the Western Conference Finals.
After getting traded during the 2010-11 NBA season, Anthony's career changed for the better, as the majority of his best years came with the Knicks.
He was an All-Star for the seven years he played with them, but while his personal achievements remained rock-solid, Anthony led them to the playoffs in only three of those seven years. The Knicks also never reached the Eastern Conference Finals.
The Knicks' failures were often attributed to Phil Jackson and his inability to surround Anthony with sufficient talent.
Selected to the NBA's 75th Anniversary Team... Carmelo Anthony! #NBA75 https://t.co/xrU9LkzCe6
Carmelo Anthony's numbers saw a significant decline after his tenure in New York. Since leaving New York, he has only averaged 14.6 points per game. He came off the bench for the Lakers for the majority of the 2021-2022 NBA season and averaged 13.3 points per game.