Lakers News: Chris Paul Stunned Carmelo Anthony Still A Man Without A Team
Future first ballot Hall of Famer Carmelo Anthony, most recently a Laker during the 2021-22 season, remains unrostered at the halfway point of the 2022-23 NBA season.
His longtime friend Chris Paul, still playing at a high level with the Phoenix Suns (though whether or not it's a high-enough level to merit consideration for his 13th All-Star team is a horse of a different color), recently was questioned by Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News about Anthony's seemingly unending free agency.
"Somebody of that caliber, with that ability, with the heart that he has, and the stuff he's done for the game -- he should be able to walk off the court when he's ready," Paul enthused.
Coincidentally (or perhaps not-so-coincidentally), Paul's Suns could certainly use Anthony right about now. Phoenix is in something of a free-fall as it struggles with the absences of All-Star shooting guard Devin Booker and its two best power forwards, Cameron Johnson and Jae Crowder, for entirely different reasons. Anthony of course lacks the defensive aptitude of either player at this point in his career, but proved himself to still be a more-than-capable scorer.
Last year with LA, Anthony quickly emerged as a crowd favorite and beloved heat check addition to the club off the bench. The 6'7" power forward, now 38, posted averages of 13.3 points (on .441/.375/.830 shooting splits) and 4.2 rebounds a night. That 37.5% three-point conversion rate was achieved on a high-volume amount of attempts (5.8 tries). Relative to preseason expectations, Melo's performance was one of the few bright spots in an otherwise dismal year for Lakers fans, as a club that expected itself to compete for its 18th title instead finished with a 33-49 record and the West's 11th seed.
