The Future Is Five Minutes Ago
If it's going to happen for Anthony, it has to start now. And yet he's ball-hogged his way into a corner: If he takes over a game offensively, he's being selfish. If he doesn't, he isn't an elite player.
Happily, his 16-point effort against Tunisia played against type, somewhat. Anthony wasn't the starter outhustled by hungrier bench players; he wasn't even starting for U.S.A. Instead, after Tunisia raced out to an unlikely 15-12 lead, Anthony was part of a bench substitution that came on and took over. He went a perfect 6-for-6, finding his shots in the rhythm of an offense ironically designed by D'Antoni, a U.S.A. assistant, and his defensive pressure helped turn the game as well.
Anthony is a gifted passer, and a capable defender, and has blended in impeccably on Team U.S.A. He even drew praise from the staff for coming in 12 pounds lighter than he'd been during the N.B.A. season. (Although this revelation carries with it its own negative space: Why did Anthony, after an N.B.A. season, have 12 pounds to lose?)
This really serves as a dress rehearsal for his moments to come with the Knicks. He gets to fill in his own biography, playing for the team he insisted Denver trade him to, under a coach he helped get promoted and then retained, surrounded by teammates brought in largely to maximize Anthony's own prime seasons.
It will be up to him whether he reinforces the assumptions about his game based on his team's limitations to date, or if he makes the most of a situation he tailored himself.
- Howard Megdal