Carmelo Anthony 's entry into the Association as the third overall pick in 2003 was the culmination of all his hard work on the court. As an NBA player, Melo was bound to earn big bucks and, more importantly, play the sport he loves at the highest level.
Young Melo meets the OG's
Interestingly, Anthony admitted that the first few weeks in the NBA didn't match the hype. Nobody seemed to take the preseason seriously, and everything seemed lax.
However, the environment soon changed as the regular season began. In his first regular season game, Carmelo played against the big boys.
"Then my first game we go play against Tim Duncan," Melo said , per the 7PM in Brooklyn with Carmelo Anthony & The Kid Mero podcast. "And I'm like, 'Ah, now I see the difference. These are grown men out here. These are Hall of Famers. These are the people you grew up watching every single day'. To run out the tunnel, and they're all cheering for us. But you see Tim Duncan down there, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili. It's like, 'Damn.'"
"As a kid, I'm 19, 20 years old, as a student of the game, it was my moment of like 'Damn, you know what, I'm here,'" he added.
Carmelo said that as the season progressed, the more he felt he was in the league. Anthony saw the likes of Allen Iverson , Tracy McGrady, and Vince Carter — all of whom were at the peak of their game and fame.
Anthony also encountered his good buddy LeBron James, the most hyped prospect in NBA history, as the New York native finally felt he was in the NBA.
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Rookie Melo
Anthony was jittery in his first few games as a pro. In his NBA debut against the Spurs, Carmelo dropped 12 points on a horrendous 26.7% from the field. The Syracuse product followed it up with another subpar performance against the Houston Rockets with 18 points on 5-of-14 shooting.
While Melo picked things up in his third game, scoring 23 points on 9-of-14 shooting, the Baltimore native fell flat in the following contest, scoring two points on 1-of-13 shooting.
But as the adage goes, one has to experience failure before succeeding. The Syracuse standout soon figured out how to play with the big boys. Anthony had a series of great performances in big wins. Melo's best display as a rookie was a 41-point explosion against the Seattle Supersonics. The best part of all, Carmelo helped the Denver Nuggets qualify for the postseason.
Related: "Don't let your confidence dip in your game" - Isiah Thomas revealed what advice he would've given LeBron and Carmelo during their rookie season
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