NBA legend Carmelo Anthony has pushed back against the perception that players from his generation were too friendly with one another and lacked competitiveness on the court.
Anthony addressed the idea that personal relationships between NBA stars prevented them from developing intense rivalries, arguing that friendships had little influence on how players approached games.
The former New York Knicks star explained that even when competing against close friends such as LeBron James, he remained determined to play physically and do whatever was necessary to win.
“Guess what we did? We competed. And if Bron went for a layup, I was trying to take his head in a sense. I’m fouling the sh*t out of Bron but in a respectful way, in a competitive way.
“My point in saying this is it doesn’t matter when you in those lines. They know we not cool. You’re my best friend; you’re my brother, but D-Wade, Kobe broke his nose in the All-Star game, right?
“He broke Kobe nose in the All-Star game, bro. It’s no bad blood. As long as this is how you giving it up, then we going to give it up this way.”
