Hall of Famer Paul Pierce played nearly two decades in the NBA, during which time he never backed down from guarding the best players on the opposing team.
Carmelo Anthony stood out among the players he defended as Pierce's toughest matchup. In an article entitled ' The Five Toughest Players I've Ever Guarded ,' the former Boston Celtics captain explained why Melo was his most challenging cover.
"Some great players will have one or two particular skills that make them special," said Pierce. "But Carmelo can do everything, which puts you in a bad situation as a defender. A lot of guys might shoot better from certain areas, so you try to force them elsewhere on the floor. Carmelo doesn't have a spot on the floor where he can't consistently hit shots."
Tougher to guard than Kobe and LeBron
Truth played Melo 37 times during their NBA careers, so he knows what he is talking about. During those games, Anthony averaged 25.2 points per game while outscoring Pierce 22 times. Sure, Paul won their all-time head-to-head matchup at 22-15 . Still, Melo's individual performances in their encounters stood out more than his battles with other all-time greats.
Pierce played against Kobe Bryant in two NBA Finals in 2008 and 2009. The Truth also had many epic showdowns against LeBron James in the Eastern Conference before LeBron went to Miami. Despite his big-game matchups against Black Mamba and Bron, Paul says Melo was still the tougher cover.
"Kobe is one of the best scorers in NBA history, but I don't have as much trouble with him in the post as I do with Carmelo," added Paul. "LeBron is a great post-up player, but if you get him to settle for the jumper on some nights, you might be able to slow him down if his shot is off. That's not the case with Melo. If you give him space to shoot, he'll make it many more times than he misses it."
Related: Michael Jordan on why guys shouldn't be able to jump from high school to NBA: "Something is affected by leaving college early"
Melo is also a phone booth scorer
Aside from Anthony's unique combination of size, strength, athleticism, and natural shooting ability, Philadelphia 76ers forward Paul George also mentioned Carmelo's ability to get off a shot from inside a phone booth as another skill that made him the most demanding player to guard.
"Melo was so good he could get his shot off in a phone booth. He didn't need much space. So with him, I had to play extra tight," George said . "So it was always staying tight with Melo, contest everything. He was so good at creating contact and being physical. I was just going to be in for a long game."
It's worth noting that PG was drafted in 2010, while Pierce was picked in the Draft in 1998. So, Carmelo receiving flowers from two superstars who entered the NBA a dozen years apart makes him even more impressive as a scorer. That shows that the Syracuse product was unstoppable from the start to the finish of his NBA career.
Related: Carmelo on how much he would average if he played on today's Knicks: "Honestly with this team, I would say I'm averaging 28"
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