Marcus Morris, Carmelo Anthony
AP Photo/Frank Franklin II

New York Knicks forward Marcus Morris called out Team USA for not letting Carmelo Anthony play in the 2019 FIBA World Cup.

Carmelo Anthony is still trying to find his way back onto an NBA roster for next season. The former New York Knicks legend reportedly floated the idea of playing for Team USA this summer but was shot down. The 2019 FIBA World Cup would have been an opportunity for Melo to market himself to prospective teams.

Following Team USA’s quarterfinal ouster at the hands of the French, the world tried to figure out how the Americans fell apart. Marcus Morris believes USA Basketball could have used Melo.

The biggest American stars decided to stay home this summer. The USA roster was made up of role players like Joe Harris and lesser stars like Kemba Walker and Donovan Mitchell.

Marcus Morris’ brother, Markieff, also took to Twitter to question Anthony’s absence from Team USA. His tweet was in response to an impassioned tweet thread from Myles Turner following the loss to France.

Bringing Anthony may not have changed the eventual result, but it’s quite clear he could have brought some much-needed shooting to the roster. “Olympic Melo” was the nickname bestowed upon Anthony for his deadly sharpshooting in international competitions.

Other than Joe Harris, Team USA was woeful from beyond the arc at the World Cup. As a team, they shot 33.3% from downtown for the tournament.

Against the French, head coach Gregg Popovich wanted to play small ball—due to the thin center rotation—but the Americans simply couldn’t hit enough shots to make it effective.

Their lack of shooting and thin frontcourt was the death knell in American hopes for a world championship. Perhaps snubbing Carmelo Anthony was the wrong move after all. There are at least two NBA players who think so.

 
NY/NJ hoops reporter (NBA/NCAA) & sports betting writer for XL Media. Never had the makings of a varsity athlete.