Known as one of the most fierce competitors in the history of the NBA, Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant never really made a lot of close friends during his time in the NBA. One player he has always maintained a good relationship with is New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony.
Anthony has been in the news recently after comments made by Knicks President and former Lakers coach Phil Jackson which suggested that Carmelo holds the ball to long on the court, disrupting the triangle offense the team runs.
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In his subsequent comments to the media, Anthony seemed bothered by Jackson’s comments, but refused to make a big deal about it. According to ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne, Anthony actually got some advice from Kobe on how to deal with Jackson:
Kobe's advice to Melo: "He's [Jackson] going to talk. Nobody can stop that. So try not to read into it too much."
— Ramona Shelburne (@ramonashelburne) December 10, 2016
Jackson is well known for taking shots at his own players in the media in order to motivate them. He did it regularly with the Lakers and Kobe and now he is doing the same in New York with Carmelo. Kobe’s advice seems pretty sound in that Jackson is always going to do whatever he feels like.
There have been rumors surrounding Jackson potentially returning to the Lakers after this season. Lakers Executive VP of Basketball Operations Jim Buss could be out after this year and Jackson can get out of his contract with the Knicks so the timing lines up. Whether or not it happens remains to be seen.
Until then Jackson will continue to do what he normally does. The Knicks, like the Lakers, are enjoying a resurgent season and both teams would likely prefer that all the attention is that more than anything else.