Carmelo Anthony Details Uncomfortable Fit With Rockets

Anthony: "They wanted me to come in and be a spot-up, corner shooter. ...It didn't work at all."

Rockets general manager Daryl Morey has never been afraid to take a gamble in his 13-year tenure with Houston, often to the organization's benefit. But one recent move didn't exactly pay off for James Harden and Co. 

Morey signed Carmelo Anthony ahead of the 2018-19 season, bringing a third All-Star aboard alongside Harden and Chris Paul. Yet unlike Morey's previous offseason splashes, the addition of Anthony didn't exactly raise Houston's championship ceiling. Anthony averaged just 13.4 points per game on 40.5 percent shooting in 10 contests with the Rockets, and his time in Houston ended after a trade to Chicago in January 2019. A potential Big 3 was quickly scuttled as Anthony struggled to integrate into the Rockets' offense. 

Anthony addressed his brief stint in Houston during an appearance on J.J. Redick's podcast, The Old Man and the Three on Thursday. The former scoring champion said he was "an outcast," with the Rockets, noting his stylistic contrast with Morey and Mike D'Antoni's system.

"I don’t want to throw out any names. They wanted me to come in and be a spot-up, corner shooter. Run to the corner, spot up, and that’s it. It didn’t work at all," Anthony said. "I used to tell them like ‘Look, throw me a bone. Just on a switch, throw it in there.’ I need that feel, I need that touch. You know, I’m a rhythm player."

"I can’t come off the bench and then shoot three threes in a row. I just can’t do that."

Anthony found a new home in 2019-20 as he signed with the Blazers on Nov. 14. The move to Portland sparked a career revival for the 10-time All-Star, and Anthony averaged 15.4 points per game on 38.5 percent from three with his new team. Perhaps Anthony couldn't excel in Houston, but he's proven to still be an effective player. The future Hall-of-Famer should add to his career resume with the Blazers in 2020-21.