Like any other superstar, Carmelo Anthony gives off the impression that he doesn’t want to be told what to do. He wants to be “the guy” on whatever team he plays for, and it was obvious that he couldn’t be that guy when Mike D’Antoni was coaching the Knicks. D’Antoni’s offense — which is predicated on point guards running the show — never sat well with Carmelo. Whether he forced D’Antoni out of town or not, it is no secret that Melo was less than thrilled with the way his former coach was utilizing his skills.
Now that Mike Woodson has taken over, Anthony seems a bit more content. He has already admitted that he has more focus and energy, and on Tuesday he told the Michael Kay Show that he enjoys the way Woodson holds players more accountable than D’Antoni did.
“I think now guys – we was almost forced to come together as a team and we was under the gun when (Mike Woodson) came on,” Anthony said as Sports Radio Interviews pointed out. “The biggest thing now is he holds guys accountable on the basketball court regardless of who it is like myself, Amar’e, Tyson (Chandler), Jeremy (Lin). Regardless of who it is he holds guys accountable. That’s big especially in this day and age.”
Carmelo added that holding guys accountable was not D’Antoni’s personality — not that it was a bad thing. The bottom line is Melo didn’t have enough control nor enough scoring opportunities with D’Antoni in charge. For him to imply that he enjoys playing under Woodson more because Woodson isn’t afraid to yell at superstars seems absurd.
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