New York Knicks: Olympic Takeaways, Roster Implications, Criticism

Criticism Follows Melo

It’s an honorable gesture and sacrifice to forfeit summer vacation with your family and compete for your country.

However, patriotism didn’t save Anthony from criticism over the past week.

First, his comments about finishing a satisfactory career with three gold medals and zero NBA championships didn’t sit well with ESPN First Take pundit Stephen A. Smith:

Some Knick fans shared Smith’s outrage. Many began to question how much he wants to win in New York City.

Of course, Anthony heard about the firestorm and came very close to responding before LeBron James intervened, which turned into a clever Instagram post:

On Sunday, New York Post reporter Phil Mushnick took a jab at Anthony’s three-point celebration, which originated with former Knick Rasheed Wallace. It’s fair to say, Mushnick isn’t a fan of the three-to-the-dome gesture:

"Yep, Mondays Anthony is an anti-street violence activist; Tuesdays he works the other side of those streets. Of course, the NBA hasn’t done a thing to ban such public, on-court displays of simulated murder. Are transgenders comfortable using North Carolina’s public bathrooms? Now, there is an issue the NBA will act on! Shucks, even the criminal-infested NFL acted to ban gang-adopted throat-slash gestures."

Is it pick on Carmelo Anthony week? The four-time Olympian should keep his eyes and ears away from the New York media for the rest of his stay in Rio and focus on the task at hand. All of this hoopla will be here when he returns to the states, preferrably flashing gold.

Next: Hernangomez versus Kuzminskas