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The NBA 2019-20 season kicks off on 22 October (Tuesday), and 10-time All-Star Carmelo Anthony has still not been selected by any team. Carmelo has not played an NBA game since the Houston Rockets released him after playing just ten games last season.
BetOnline has offered a price of -500 in the latest odds on Anthony not playing an NBA game this season. The amount provided on him getting picked by a team is +300.
Over the last few days, several reports have surfaced of teams showing interest in signing Anthony, but nothing concrete has come out of it.
Reports suggested that Brooklyn Nets were interested in Anthony but later signed another player. Another claimed that though Lakers were negotiating with the Grizzlies for acquiring Andre Iguodala, they were considering Anthony as a backup plan in case the deal for Iguodala fell through.
Some have suggested that the game of basketball has evolved, and Carmelo Anthony has just failed to keep up. The coaching staff of various teams is looking for a varied skill set that includes above-average 3-point shooting, floor spacing, good ball-movement combined with perimeter defending.
Carmelo’s poor defending during his Houston stint must have been taken into consideration by other teams. Even Carmelo’s offensive game has become ineffectual. This was evident during the 2018 play-offs when Thunder was outscored when he was playing, and they were outscoring Jazz when he was benched.
Thus, it is not an issue of fitness or age, though he is 35 yrs. old, an inability to adapt to changes in the game as it evolves that has led to Anthony being without a team. This is the reason for the high odds on any team picking him because he just doesn’t fit into the way basketball is played today.
