Written by Ian Begley at ESPN.com
Carmelo Anthony took the high road in response to former NBA coach George Karl’s criticism of him during their time together with the Denver Nuggets.
“I just hope that he finds happiness in what he’s doing. His book, hopefully, will bring him happiness,” Anthony said Thursday night, adding that he isn’t disappointed by Karl’s remarks.
“I’m past being disappointed,” he said.
Mostly, Anthony said he was pleased that former Nuggets teammates J.R. Smith and Kenyon Martin defended him in the wake of Karl’s assertions in his book, “Furious George,” that Anthony is selfish and a “user” and that he played with a lack of commitment on defense.
“It’s irrelevant to me. It’s irrelevant at this point,” Anthony said. “The truth of the matter is everybody else is kind of speaking up for me from their own experience. So I really don’t have to speak on it.”
Karl coached Anthony in Denver from January 2005 to February 2011, when Anthony’s demand for a trade was fulfilled and he joined the New York Knicks. Karl said in the book that the trade was “a sweet release for the coach and the team, like popping a blister,” according to an advance copy obtained by the New York Post.
“Carmelo was a true conundrum for me in the six years I had him,” Karl wrote in the book. “He was the best offensive player I ever coached. He was also a user of people, addicted to the spotlight and very unhappy when he had to share it.
“He really lit my fuse with his low demand of himself on defense. He had no commitment to the hard, dirty work of stopping the other guy.”
Anthony said he never heard such criticism from Karl or other members of the coaching staff when he was in Denver.
“When you’re there, it’s a different story than what you hear after the fact. I never knew it was this much,” Anthony said. “I never knew I was a — what was the word — conundrum? I don’t even know what the hell that means, to be honest with you.
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