Carmelo Anthony might have retired from the NBA, but he certainly hasn't lost his confidence. The 10-time All-Star officially announced his retirement in May 2023, bringing an end to a 19-season career.
However, his recent claim about defending superstar opponents has left some NBA fans questioning his memory.
During an episode of the " 7PM in Brooklyn " podcast, Anthony claimed that no star player he faced throughout his career ever dropped 30 points on him. The former Denver Nuggets star explained that he always came prepared when facing elite opponents.
"I've never had a problem with star players… Because the level that you had to lock in on with the star against the star players, you was prepared for that."
"So it was always a guy who was very good at, like, cutting the baseline back door; you ain't looking… So I don't have nobody who's like, just gave me straight buckets," Anthony said during the podcast .
The clip spread quickly across social media, and NBA fans wasted no time responding.
Anthony's career deserves its flowers. He averaged 22.5 points per game, playing 1,260 regular-season games while adding 6.2 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game.
There is no doubt he was a great player. But the initial fan reaction was that why do retired players so often feel the need to speak so highly of themselves, even when the record says otherwise.
"One of the funniest lies ever told," one fan wrote , whereas another one said , "Why do retired players always need to gas themselves up like they're a top player of all time?"
James did have a massive scoring night against Anthony's Nuggets, putting up 43 points, 13 rebounds and 15 assists on Feb. 18, 2010. However, the box score alone does not show how many of those points came while Anthony was guarding him directly.
It was a complete takeover, and fans were happy to remind Anthony of it. "I love Melo, but Bron used to COOK him," said one fan .
One user took a different approach. Instead of typing out an argument, they posted a video from April 23, 2008, Game 2 of the Western Conference First Round, when Kobe Bryant torched Anthony's Nuggets for 49 points . Bryant shot 18-of-27 from the field, including 5-of-9 from the 3-point range, for 79.1% true shooting.
"Anyway, here's Kobe Bryant torching Melo for 49 on 79 TS% in Game 2 of 2008 Western Conference Semi-Finals," the user wrote .
Nevertheless, these reactions show that fans weren't ready to accept Anthony's claim without questioning it.
While his reputation as a great scorer remains unquestionable, his latest comments have brought some of the NBA's most memorable individual performances back into the spotlight.
This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network .
