NBA's Carmelo Anthony Believes He Beat LeBron James for Accolades

(Photo : Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images) ATHENS - (L-R) LeBron James (#9) and Carmelo Anthony (#8) on the bench during the second half of the men's basketball quarterfinal game against Spain on August 26, 2004 during the Athens 2004 Summer Olympic Games at the Indoor Hall of the Olympic Sports Complex in Athens, Greece.

Former NBA superstar Carmelo Anthony officially announced his retirement from professional basketball in a video posted across all his social media platforms.

 Several other players gave tribute to Anthony's career, including fellow 2003 draft class member LeBron James, who already knew that the announcement would come.

Read more: Carmelo Anthony Announces Retirement, Passes Down Legacy

Carmelo Anthony Says He Should've Won Rookie of the Year Over LeBron James

The 9th all-time leading scorer in NBA history gave his take on who should have won the 2004 NBA Rookie of the Year award in an interview with Sports Illustrated.

"I should have won that; everybody knows. I thought we'd at least share it, since we both lived up to the expectations that first year. He had an incredible year, and in my case, we made the playoffs," the recently retired star said while laughing.

LeBron James was selected 1st overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2003 NBA Draft, while Carmelo Anthony came at 3rd for the Denver Nuggets.

Both young stars had sensational rookie seasons, sweeping all the Rookie of the Month awards in their respective conferences for the whole season.

However, only Anthony was able to lead his team to the postseason in 2004, leading Denver to the first round. The top-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves ousted them in five games, but Anthony was lauded for leading his team up to that point.

Despite that, Anthony lost the Rookie of the Year award to fellow standout James.

The two finally teamed up in the Los Angeles Lakers in Anthony's final stint in the NBA in 2021-22.

Related Article: Kevin Durant Roasts Carmelo Anthony Amid Retirement  

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