Carmelo Kiyan Anthony (born May 29, 1984) is an American professional basketball player for the Denver Nuggets, of the National Basketball Association. He has also played with the United States national basketball team. As a freshman in college, Anthony led Syracuse University to a 30–5 record and the school's first NCAA championship in men's basketball in 2003.
He was named the Most Outstanding Player (MOP) of the 2003 NCAA Final Four and MVP of NCAA East Regional. He was also named the consensus national Freshman of the Year and was a unanimous choice as the Big East Conference Freshman of the Year. Anthony was selected as the third pick in the 2003 NBA Draft and named the 2005 Rookie Challenge MVP. Anthony was born in the Red Hook projects in Brooklyn, New York City.[2] His father, after whom he is named, died of cancer when Anthony was two years old.[3] When Anthony turned eight, his family moved to Baltimore, where he honed not only his athletic skills, but his survival skills. Kenny Minor, one of Anthony's childhood friends, said, "from drugs, to killings, to anything you can name that goes on in the roughest parts of town, we've seen and witnessed hands on. Those are the things that teach you toughness and keep you mentally focused on your goals." Sports would serve as an important diversion from the violence and drug dealing that were pervasive in the housing projects a few blocks from the homes of Anthony and his friends.Anthony commuted to Towson Catholic High School for his first three years of high school.[5] During the summer of 2000, when he grew five inches, he made a name for himself in the area, being named The Baltimore Sun's metro player of the year in 2001, as well as Baltimore Catholic League player of the year.[6] Anthony transferred to Oak Hill Academy in Virginia for his senior campaign. While at Oak Hill Academy, Anthony was named to the McDonald's All-American Team and won the Sprite Slam Jam dunk contest prior to the McDonald’s All-American game. He was also named a USA Today First-Team All-American and a Parade First-Team All-American.
Anthony played one season (2002-2003) at Syracuse University. He averaged 22.1 points (16th in the NCAA, 4th in the Big East) and 10.0 rebounds (19th in the NCAA, 3rd in the Big East, 1st among NCAA Division I freshmen). He helped guide the Orangemen to their first ever NCAA tournament title in 2003. He led the team in scoring, rebounding, minutes played (36.4 minutes per game), field goals made and free throws made and attempted.[8] Anthony's 33-point outburst against the University of Texas in the Final Four set an NCAA tournament record for most points by a freshman.[9]
In the championship game against the University of Kansas, Anthony had 20 points and 10 rebounds.
Anthony's NBA career began on June 26, 2003, when he was chosen in the first round (3rd overall) of the 2003 NBA Draft draft by the Denver Nuggets. He was selected behind LeBron James (1st overall, Cleveland Cavaliers) and Darko Miličić (2nd overall, Detroit Pistons).[15] He made his NBA regular season debut on October 29, 2003, in an 80-72 home win against the San Antonio Spurs.[16] Anthony finished the night with 12 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists. In just his sixth career NBA game (November 7 versus the Los Angeles Clippers), Anthony scored 30 points, becoming the second youngest player in NBA history to score 30 points or more in a game (19 years, 151 days; Kobe Bryant was the youngest).[17] It was the fewest amount of games a Nuggets rookie took to score 30 points in a contest since the ABA-NBA merger. On February 9, 2004, against the Memphis Grizzlies, Anthony became the third-youngest player to reach the 1,000-point plateau in NBA history with a 20-point effort in an 86-83 win.On February 13, 2004, Anthony participated in the Got Milk? Rookie Challenge at All-Star Weekend.[1] In 30 minutes of playing time, Anthony scored 17 points, grabbed 3 rebounds and dished out 5 assists in a losing effort (142-118).[19] On March 30 of that year, he scored 41 points against the Seattle SuperSonics to set a new Denver Nuggets franchise mark for most points in a game by a rookie.[20] He also became the second-youngest player (19 years, 305 days) to score at least 40 points in a game in NBA history. After winning the Rookie of the Month award for the Western Conference in the month of April, Anthony became the fourth player in NBA history to capture all six of the Rookie of the Month awards in a season. Anthony was a major part in the turn around of the Denver Nuggets from league laughingstock to playoff contender. In the season before Anthony was drafted by the team, the Nuggets finished with a 17-65 record, which tied them for worst in the NBA with the Cleveland Cavaliers. They finished the 2003-04 campaign with a 43-39 overall record, qualifying them as the eighth seed for the post-season. Anthony became the first NBA rookie to lead a playoff team in scoring since David Robinson of the San Antonio Spurs during the 1989-90 season.[7] The Nuggets faced the top-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round. In Anthony's first career playoff game, he had 19 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists, in a 106-92 loss at Minnesota. Anthony played and started in 80 games during the season. He averaged 26.5 ppg (8th, NBA), 2.7 apg, 4.9 rpg and 1.1 spg. His eighth place finish in NBA scoring was the highest finish by a Denver player since the 1990-91 season, when Nuggets guard Michael Adams finished the season sixth in NBA scoring. The Nuggets finished the season in third place, winning the Northwest Division for the first time in Anthony's career. Denver faced the sixth-seeded Los Angeles Clippers in the first round of the playoffs. The Clippers held home court advantage in the series, due to ending the regular season with a better record (Denver finished 44-38; Los Angeles finished 47-35). The Clippers won the first two games of the series on their home floor.[37] The Nuggets split their games at home in Denver (winning game three; losing game four).[38] Denver then lost game five at Los Angeles, which eliminated the Nuggets from the playoffsOn December 16, Anthony was one of many players involved in the infamous Knicks-Nuggets brawl during a game at Madison Square Garden.[43] Footage showed Anthony laying a punch on the face of New York's Mardy Collins and subsequently backing away. As a result of his actions, Anthony was suspended for 15 games by NBA commissioner David Stern.[44] Shortly thereafter, the Nuggets traded for Allen Iverson in a bid to form a deadly combination with Anthony. The duo didn't get to play alongside one another until a home game against the Memphis Grizzlies on January 22, which was the day Anthony was allowed to return from his 15-game suspension.[45] Anthony finished the game with 28 points, as he and Iverson combined for 51 points. Anthony won Player of the Week honors three times during the season (November 20–November 26; November 27–December 3; and February 5–February 11), and received Player of the Month honors for April, after leading the Nuggets to a 10-1 record for the month and into sixth place in the final regular season standings of the Western Conference. Anthony finished the season as the league's second leading scorer behind Bryant, with an average of 28.9 ppg, while adding 6.0 rpg, 3.8 apg and 1.2 spg. He was named to All-NBA Third Team for the second straight year, along with Miami's Dwyane Wade, Detroit's Chauncy Billups, Minnesota's Kevin Garnett and Orlando's Dwight Howard. For the second time in three years, Anthony and the sixth-seeded Nuggets faced the third-seeded San Antonio Spurs in the first round of the playoffs. In a virtual repeat of the 2005 first round playoff matchup between the two teams, Denver won the first game in San Antonio, 95-89, only to lose the next four games. The Nuggets were eliminated in the first round for the fourth straight year. In the playoff series against the Spurs, Anthony averaged a team-high 26.8 ppg to go along with 8.6 rpg, 1.2 apg and 1.0 spg.
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Carmelo Kiyan Anthony
Thursday, April 30, 2009
LeBron Raymone James
LeBron Raymone James (born December 30, 1984 in Akron, Ohio) is an American professional basketball player for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association. A three-time Mr. Ohio in high school, "King James" was highly promoted in the national media as a future NBA superstar while still a sophomore at St. Vincent–St. Mary High School. At just 18, he was selected with the number one pick in the 2003 NBA draft by the Cavaliers and signed a US$90 million shoe contract with Nike before his professional debut. Listed as a small forward but often classified as a point forward due to his ability to run the offense like a point guard,[1] James has set numerous youngest player records since joining the League. He was named the NBA Rookie of the Year in 2003–04, and has been both All-NBA and an All-Star every season since 2005.
The focal point of the Cleveland offense, James has led the team to consecutive playoff appearances in 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2009; in 2007, the Cavaliers advanced to the Conference Finals for the first time since 1992 and the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history. Runner-up in the 2006 NBA Most Valuable Player Award and 2009 NBA Defensive Player
of the Year Award balloting, James is also a member of the United States men's national basketball team, winning the bronze medal at the 2004 Olympics and a gold at the 2008 Olympics.
James attended St. Vincent–St. Mary High School in Akron, Ohio, where he became a starter during his freshman year for the Fighting Irish.[2] He averaged 21 points and 6.2 rebounds, and led the team to a 23–1 record en route to the Division III state title. Keith Dambrot, now head coach at the University of Akron, was the head coach at St. Vincent–St. Mary. Coach Dambrot started working with James doing $1 clinics at a local recreation center.In his sophomore year, James averaged 25.2 points, 7.2 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 3.8 steals.He led the team to a 26–1 record and a Division III state title for the second straight season.He was the first sophomore to be named Ohio's "Mr. Basketball" and also became the first sophomore player ever selected to the USA Today All-USA First Team.
NBA career
2003–04 season
James was selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the first overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft. Facing the Sacramento Kings in his first NBA game, James recorded 25 points, 9 assists, 6 rebounds, and 4 steals and shot 60% from the floor.
He averaged 20.9 points, 5.9 assists, and 5.5 rebounds per game for the season,[10] and was named 2003-04 NBA Rookie of the Year; becoming the first Cavalier and youngest NBA player to ever receive the award.He joined Oscar Robertson and Michael Jordan as the only three players in NBA history to average at least 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists per game in their rookie season. 2005–06 season
In the 2005–06 season, James was elected to his second straight All-Star Game appearance and led the Eastern All-Stars to a 122–120 victory, with 29 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 assists. He became the youngest All-Star MVP at 21 years, 51 days.
James made his playoff debut against the Washington Wizards in 2006. He recorded a triple-double with 32 points, 11 assists and 11 rebounds, as the Cavaliers defeated the Wizards 97–86.He joined Johnny McCarthy and Magic Johnson as the only players in NBA history to register a triple-double in their playoff debut.For the series, James averaged 35.7 points, as the Cavaliers defeated the Wizards in six games.[ In the Eastern Conference Finals, James led the
Cavaliers from an 0–2 deficit against the Detroit Pistons to win the series in six games. His performance in Game 5 was especially memorable. James recorded a franchise-record 48 points on 54.5% field goal shooting, 9 rebounds and 7 assists. In addition, James scored 29 of Cleveland's last 30 points, including the team's final 25 points in a double-overtime victory.
James has established himself as a legitimate triple-double threat and has averaged 27.3 points, 6.6 assists and 6.9 rebounds per game for his career.[10] As of the 2007–08 season, he has recorded seventeen triple-doubles in his career, with fourteen in the regular season and three in the postseason.On offense, James utilizes his quickness, size, and strength to get past defenders. James is known for his exceptional upper body strength. When penetrating to the basket, James exhibits superb body control, adjusting his shot in mid-air according to the defense, allowing him to absorb contact and finish at the basket. He is also proficient at finishing around the rim with both hands. In the 2005–06 season, he led the league in completed traditional three point plays.He is a solid rebounder who regularly ranks among the league leaders in rebounds for the small forward position. His overall skill sets and on-court play has led to many comparisons to NBA legends Oscar Robertson, Magic Johnson, and Michael Jordan.
Although James exhibits exceptional offensive ability, he has yet to be featured on the NBA All-Defensive Team and has struggled with his free throw shooting — he averaged a subpar .698 free throw percentage in the 2006-07 season.
