Jim Boeheim doesn’t like the chances of his former Syracuse star Carmelo Anthony winning an NBA title.
Boeheim coached Anthony with the Orange in the Knicks stars one-and-done NCAA Championship season in 2002-2003. He’s also guided Anthony to three Olympic gold medals as an assistant coach for Team USA. Despite the relationship, Boeheim admitted he’s got a slim chance at winning the NBA’s top trophy.
“He’s unlikely to win an NBA title,” Boeheim told Syracuse.com. “He’s never been on a team that even had a remote chance of winning an NBA title. As a player, all you can do is try to make your team better and every team he’s been on he’s made them a lot better. Denver hadn’t done anything prior to him getting there and he took them into the playoffs. They weren’t going to beat the Lakers or the Spurs. In those years, they won the championship most of the time.
Boeheim isn’t entirely wrong.
Anthony has never played on a title contender. His loyalty to the New York Knicks has eroded his chance of winning an NBA Championship. His stardom has been wasted as the Knicks fail rebuild after rebuild. With Anthony, Derrick Rose, and Joakim Noah, New York will be improved from their dreadful 2015-16 campaign, but the organization is still spinning tires in its question in building a championship contender.
Boeheim told Syracuse.com he believes Anthony makes his teams better and praised his title resume outside the NBA. The longtime Syracuse Orange coach isn’t dissing Anthony, but is honestly saying Carmelo hasn’t been given a great chance to win it all. As long as Anthony is a Knick, the likelihood he hoists the Larry O’Brien Trophy in his career are, as Boeheim put it, unlikely.
