Carmelo Anthony played for 19 seasons in the NBA before retiring. He played for various teams, including the Denver Nuggets, New York Knicks, Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets, Portland Trail Blazers, and Los Angeles Lakers. Throughout his professional career, he achieved several milestones, including being a 10-time NBA All-Star, winning the NBA Scoring Champion title in 2013, and earning three Gold Medals for Team USA in the Olympics. He is often praised during interviews for his outstanding career.

Recently, during an appearance on the 7 PM in Brooklyn podcast, Portland Trail Blazers Coach Chauncey Billups discussed how Carmelo Anthony could have transformed the Detroit Pistons’ legacy after the NBA Draft in 2003.

“We were already celebrating. Bro, it would have been perfect. Most people always ask, ‘Would he have started? Or would Melo have started? Or Tay?’ What most people forget is that at the time of that draft, we didn’t have Sheed. We got Sheed at the trade deadline, so Melo would have been starting right from the top.” Chauncey Billups said.

Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups

Carmelo Anthony

Pistons’ Shocking Choice of Darko Milicic Over Carmelo Anthony

In the 2003 NBA Draft, the Pistons held the second overall pick. Everyone expected them to choose Carmelo Anthony after LeBron James was likely to be selected first by the Cleveland Cavaliers. However, the Pistons chose Darko Milicic instead. This decision has sparked widespread criticism over the years. Milicic was traded from team to team during his ten NBA seasons, and he never ended a season with more than nine points per game. On the other hand, Carmelo Anthony, who was selected third overall by the Denver Nuggets, quickly established himself as a prolific scorer and one of the NBA’s talented players. The Pistons missed out on Anthony’s incredible career numbers by selecting Milicic over Anthony. Billups clarified that Anthony might have improved the team’s output even with the Pistons’ excellent lineup.

“We still reminisce about that. We still don’t know what happened. Yeah, bro, it’s crazy. We always say, ‘Man, we would have won at least three championships.’ I say it all the time. I tell them, ‘LeBron would have had to leave Cleveland a lot earlier than he did because they never would have beaten us. They never would have beaten us.’” Billups added.