one aspect of carmelo anthony's game i don't think he ever got enough credit for was his persistence on the offensive glass.
his desire to go after his own misses below the basket, combined with his amazing strength and quick second-jumping ability, made him a joy to watch night in and night out.
these are big boy rebounds:
just a straight beast in the paint:
i always loved how melo played through contact. he sought out body-on-body collisions on nearly every contested drive. it fueled his game:
there's a reason many elite defenders have said anthony was their most difficult matchup. perhaps there were other scorers who could score more points and more efficiently, but you definitely felt every single bucket melo gave you.
in a way, he was born after his time. it would've been incredible to watch melo's game in the 1980s and 90s, where midrange isos, physicality below the rim, and one-on-one play were at their peak.
the advanced metrics probably won't be friendly to melo once he retires (honestly, they already aren't). but those who watched him know: melo's a bully.
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related: it was always hilarious hearing carmelo yell "i got it, get the fuck outta here" when grabbing rebounds (turn your audio on):
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