Carmelo Anthony Comments On Plans For Retirement, Hints It Might Be ‘Coming Soon’
Since his stint with the Houston Rockets ended after just 10 games, Carmelo Anthony has not seen a single minute of action for another team. Just as expected, the 34-year-old small forward was cut after he was traded to the Chicago Bulls last month, as noted by Bleacher Report, but with more than a week having passed since then, Anthony remains an unsigned free agent. But regardless of whether he ends up with another team or not before the 2018-19 NBA regular season is over, it appears that “Melo” is already open to the possibility of closing the book on a Hall of Fame-caliber career.
In an interview with the Huffington Post published on Friday, Anthony looked back on his 16-year NBA career and how he plans to retire on his own terms and nobody else’s. After stressing that it’s important to feel good about walking away from basketball before making the decision, Anthony opened up about when he expects to retire from the sport.
“I’m sure it’s coming soon,” Anthony told the Huffington Post.
“I’d be sitting lying to you if I said it’s not coming soon. I think I want it to come soon. I don’t think I want to do this forever, but because you love it so much, it’s hard to give it up. At the end of the day, at anything you do, when it’s your time to go, it’s your time to go. But as long as you feel good with that.”
The Lakers wanted Anthony Davis, and will have to settle for Carmelo Anthony https://t.co/7te4g83eiK pic.twitter.com/zltlUm3sGo
— For The Win (@ForTheWin) February 8, 2019
As explained by Bleacher Report, Carmelo Anthony has been inactive since he played his last game for the Rockets on November 8, and has “struggled to find a home” after spending the first 14 years of his career with the Denver Nuggets — who drafted him third overall in 2003 — and the New York Knicks. During his brief stint in Houston, Anthony averaged a career-low 13.4 points per game, which is well below his career average of 24 points over 16 seasons.
At the moment, the Los Angeles Lakers have frequently been brought up as the team most likely to sign Anthony as a free agent, considering how he and LeBron James are longtime friends who entered the league via the same draft class. Bleacher Report predicted that Anthony will likely remain on the bench if he signs for the Lakers, playing behind James and youngsters Brandon Ingram and Kyle Kuzma as Los Angeles hopes to finish the regular season strong and make the playoffs for the first time in six years.
