Carmelo Anthony reveals Sixers had interest before joining Lakers
The Philadelphia 76ers have long been in need of somebody who can put the ball on the floor and create offense from the perimeter. They have needed somebody who can break down a defense and make tough shots while being a clutch player from the perimeter.
They had somebody like that, but Jimmy Butler left for the Miami Heat. Ever since, the Sixers have needed somebody who can replicate that skill next to Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons.
As they entered 2021 free agency, the Sixers were hoping to add a future Hall of Famer who could bring the skills they needed: Carmelo Anthony.
Anthony, who spent the previous two seasons with the Portland Trail Blazers, sat down with Yahoo! Sports’ Chris Haynes on the “Posted Up” podcast and revealed the Sixers were one of the teams interested in him before he signed with the Los Angeles Lakers (h/t Sports Illustrated):
I’m sure there was a lot of things that was happening over there (in Portland) that was just not clear. I made that almost like a home for me. Within two years, I felt like I was a part of that community. New York was always there — coming back to New York was always a story. … Philly, looking at Philly — I didn’t really get a chance to really converse with Philly, but there was interest there.
Anthony averaged 13.4 points and 3.1 rebounds and he shot 40.9% from deep for the Blazers in the 2020-21 season off their bench and he would have been a nice addition here. While not the ruthless scorer he once was, he has fully transitioned into being a role player at this stage of his career, and he would have been a nice complement to the team’s stars.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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