The Knicks are sliding this week, and Carmelo Anthony is getting upset. While losing bothers him, he’s been even more frustrated at the lack of respect from the referees. Anthony was frank about his feelings on getting to the line only six times a game.
“I always get fouled. That’s what frustrating me. You play so hard, work so hard, then you don’t benefit from that. Then you kind of look at other guys and you touch them, you look at them wrong, you get fouls,” Anthony said Wednesday after the Jazz beat the Knicks.
According to the referees, Anthony is just tough to officiate.
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"They just tell me I'm the most difficult player to referee in the NBA,” Anthony said (via Yahoo). “I've heard that a couple of times. It's unclear on who is creating the contact. My goal is to go to the basket. If I'm creating the contact going toward the basket [and] I get hit, it's a foul.''
The issue is reminiscent of Shaquille O’Neal in his prime, when legend has it he was fouled basically every time he touched the ball. O’Neal was a 7-foot behemoth, however, while Anthony is a large forward, but a perimeter player nonetheless. Anthony also hasn’t averaged more than seven free throw attempts since the 2012-13 season, which would indicate the officiating on him has been consistent.
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Anthony is also overstating the physicality of his play. 26.7 percent of Anthony’s 18.1 shots per game are 3-pointers, which he makes at a 34 percent clip. 23. 6 percent of his shots come from 16 feet or greater. That means half of Anthony’s shots are coming from well outside the paint, and he’d get more calls if he attempted more shots inside three feet.
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Melo can't get no calls smh https://t.co/yrbzsdXGDx
— Eugene Jones (@Hugo_Jones1) December 11, 2015
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