Carmelo Anthony is going through a rough period in his career. Anthony is struggling to find a job in the NBA after his forgettable stint with the Houston Rockets in 2018-19. He played only 10 games for Houston before they waved him, and since then, Anthony is looking for an NBA team to join.
“I felt like the game didn’t want me back at that point in time,” Anthony said to ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith on First Take. “I’m in the gym every single day.”
"I felt like the game didn’t love me back at that point. … Now, I love the game too much to be away from it."
–Carmelo Anthony on his free agency
(via @FirstTake) pic.twitter.com/rCXr0ZBu5z
— ESPN (@espn) August 2, 2019
The six-time All-NBA player didn’t want to blame former teammate Chris Paul or head coach Mike D’Antoni for his Rockets exit, but he spoke about general manager Daryl More and how he informed him that he was not needed anymore.
“He came in and basically said, ‘Look, your services are no longer needed,'” Anthony said. “I was like, ‘What? Hold up. What the hell are you talking about? … You telling me I can’t make a 9-, 10-man rotation on this team?'”
“That was an ego hit. That was a pride hit. i started questioning myself after that. Can I still do this? What did I do? I asked him this. … He just said it wasn’t working out. When somebody in power that tells you that they no longer need your services … I’ve been utilizing my services for a long time. For you to tell me you don’t need that no more. I honestly felt that I was fired. I felt like [what] other people go through on a day-to-day basis. People get fired. I honestly felt like I got fired.”
