Carmelo Anthony on Saturday weighed in on talk of a huge honor he might receive from the New York Knicks.
Anthony was asked about the possibility of the Knicks retiring his number. The former Syracuse star said he would be “ecstatic” if the team decided to grant him the honor, but they should not bother if they have to think about it too hard.
“I would love to see that,” Anthony said, via Zach Braziller of the New York Post. “For me, it’s like, ‘Why wait?’ If you got to think about it then cool, just let it be.
“I don’t know man, to be honest with you. A lot of surprises are happening right now around me, so I’m trying to stay in the moment, and if that’s one of the surprises, then I would be ecstatic about that. I would love to see that jersey hung up.”
Anthony was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame this week, which led to the subject of his Knicks tenure being revisited. Two years ago, it was reported that there were some within the Knicks organization who feel strongly that the team should retire his No. 7.
Eight Knicks players have had their numbers retired, with Patrick Ewing the most recent to receive the honor in 2003.
Anthony spent parts of seven seasons with the Knicks, averaging 24.7 points per game and making six All-Star teams while a member of the organization. However, he never came particularly close to winning a championship, or even having much playoff success. There will be some debate over whether that justifies such a huge honor from the franchise, though Anthony himself does not appear interested in the debate.
