Carmelo Anthony’s Melancholy NBA Return
After a season away, the future Hall of Famer comes back to a league that no longer has much use for him.
Tuesday night, after more than a year away, the 35-year-old 10-time All-Star Carmelo Anthony returned to the NBA. His absence had been due not to injury or suspension but to a belief that he’s simply no longer all that useful to have around. During his last full season, with the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2017–18, he proved a poor fit, siphoning shots away from Russell Westbrook and Paul George and of accepting a bench role. His time with the Houston Rockets the following year lasted just 10 games. Despite public support from well-regarded friends like and , Anthony couldn’t find work the rest of that season, or in time for the start of this one. Then the struggling
