New York Knicks superstar forward Carmelo Anthony decided to respond to the comments made by Amar’e Stoudemire regarding Linsanity.
By David Hong
New York Knicks‘ star Carmelo Anthony and former Knicks and current Miami Heat forward Amar’e Stoudemire were reunited as opponents on Sunday when the Heat beat the Knicks 98-81 at Madison Square Garden.
Afterward, Stoudemire reflected on his time with the Knicks. He mainly discussed Jeremy Lin‘s moments as a Knick (otherwise known as Linsanity) and how it might have created some jealously, namely in Melo.
This is what Amar’e told Marc Berman of the New York Post regarding Linsanity:
“If (Lin) stayed, it would’ve been cool. But everyone wasn’t a fan of him being a new star. So he didn’t stay long. Jeremy was a great, great guy, great with teammates, worked hard. He put the work in. We were proud of him having his moment. A lot of times you got to enjoy somebody else’s success. That wasn’t the case for us during that stretch. You got to enjoy that and let that player enjoy himself and cherish those moments. He was becoming a star and I didn’t think everyone was pleased with that.”
When Melo was asked about Stoudemire’s comments regarding Linsanity, Anthony responded to ESPN.com’s Ohm Youngmisuk:
“Still? That was (four) years ago? I don’t know. I don’t have no comment about that. If (Lin) was becoming a star, we should embrace that. I don’t know. We didn’t embrace it? was that the word?”
“S—, if that was the case then I’d be upset right now with KP (rookie fan favorite Kristaps Porzingis), if he’s talking about me. I doubt if (Stoudemire is) talking about me. I doubt that. I highly doubt that.”
Melo also responded to Amare’s comments with a couple of tweets.
— Carmelo Anthony (@carmeloanthony) February 29, 2016
— Carmelo Anthony (@carmeloanthony) February 29, 2016
There’s not doubt Melo has embraced Kristaps Porzingis, taken him under his wings, and is trying to help the rookie develop in the NBA.
This is something he clearly didn’t do much of with Lin. Whether Melo was actually jealous at Lin’s sudden rise to fame or not, who really knows. Melo was thought by many to be jealous of Lin, pointing to the fact that Anthony described Lin’s contract with the Houston Rockets as “ridiculous,” which was one of the factors leading the Knicks in not matching Lin’s contract, allowing him to go to Houston.
Either way, Melo should’ve known better than to respond to Amare’s comments like that on social media. I know the two weren’t the best of friends when Amar’e was a Knick, and that they didn’t mesh well on the court, but Anthony would be better served to forge ahead silently and allow the noise to evaporate quicker.
Along with helping Porzingis’s development, Melo has done a better job being a more unselfish player and bring a leader. Despite the Knicks losing 14 of their last 17 games, Melo should be one of the least criticized players due to his changed play.
The last thing Melo needs is self-made problems.
