Retired NBA legend and former Los Angeles Lakers player Carmelo Anthony recalled a time in his career when his teammates got traded to play with LeBron James, who back then was one of his strongest rivals in the league.
Iman Shumpert appeared as a guest on the “7PM in Brooklyn” podcast, where he and Anthony ended up recalling the 2015 trade that brought him and JR Smith over to the Cleveland Cavaliers, where LeBron James was playing for at the time.
“F**k them! I told LeBron, I said ‘That’s what we doing?’,” Anthony recalled of the story. “When it happened, the only thing going through my mind was LeBron. I know this is a chess game. I gotta get these guys away from him.”
“Do y’all know what the f**k you just did? Y’all gon’ send them to him?!”
Melo was HOT when the Knicks sent Shump & JR Smith to team up with Bron. pic.twitter.com/OVzKyDl3ZD
— 7PM in Brooklyn (@7PMinBrooklyn) November 26, 2024
Indeed, at that point in his career, the Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James rivalry is one of the hottest rivalries in the NBA kept fans engaged. However, that is not to say that the two had off-court beef. In fact, they were known to be long-time good friends, even becoming known as the “Banana Boat Crew,” along with Dwyane Wade and Chris Paul.
“Sh*t is f***ed up because I could have used Shump and J.R. to go win a championship, he added. “That’s why I flipped out like that in the locker room because you do not touch this nucleus right here! I don’t give a f**k what you do. I said ‘Y’all can’t say sh*t to me. Do y’all know what the f**k you just did? You’re gonna send them to him?”
The 2015 trade they talked about was the three-way deal between the Cleveland Cavaliers, the New York Knicks, and the Oklahoma City Thunder. Dion Waiters was given to the Thunder, Shumpert and Smith to the Cavs, and the Knicks Lou Amundson, Alex Kirk, Lance Thomas, and a second-round draft pick.
Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James Likened to Comic Book Characters
From the same podcast, Iman Shumpert recalled how he felt following the trade, and being caught in the middle of the hot rivalry between Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James.
“I’m like, trying to process like, damn bro, like, one, this n**** and Bron is like, arch enemy, you know what I’m saying?” Shumpert said. “It’s like, they like everybody’s comic book right now. Like, why the f***, why I gotta be part of this? And when I got to, it was weird for me and Bron initially.”
While Carmelo Anthony has retired from professional basketball, his son Kiyan is setting himself to follow on his father’s footsteps, as he recently signed to play for the Syracuse Orange.
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Dan has been active in sports since 2016 and has worked behind the scenes as a scriptwriter for basketball, volleyball, and other sports. At a time, Dan has also been working as a sports commentator for CBA Pilipinas. During the pandemic, he has also been actively writing betting articles for CashBet and BetNow.
