“It’s a man’s league, no boys allowed!” Carmelo Anthony immediately shuts down claims of UConn college team competing in NBA

NBA Hall of Famer Carmelo Anthony is one of the greatest basketball players to ever play the sport. “Melo” spent 20 years in the league, being known as a lethal scorer and a mid-range threat. As respected as he was in the league, Melo would not let any disrespect slide toward the league, either.

Recently, Mike Greenberg praised UCONN’s dominance in college basketball but might have gone too far. Greenberg believed that the Huskies who will be playing the Boilermakers for the national championship have a legitimate chance to compete in the NBA Play-In tournament.

Anthony’s reaction to this take said it all. Melo did not back on the league’s competitiveness and what it takes to make it to the big stage.

That's a man's league no matter how young guys come into the league. It's still a man's league. It's like, no boys allowed. The thought of like, being professional, NBA, that s*** is hard to get there man. And these guys that's there, that's nice as s*** that don't get in the game on some of these teams... And UCONN is a phenomenal team, phenomenal team... None of these teams is coming to the NBA, so let's stop the bulls***.

Carmelo Anthony said on the recent episode of 7PM in Brooklyn

Melo was clear with his words. No matter how good a college team is, in the end, the NBA comprises teams with professional players who have been playing the game at the highest level for quite a long time. While college players are athletic, fast, and agile, players in the NBA are a few notches above their level.

Carmelo Anthony has some serious advice for college players

Melo played for Syracuse in his college days. Following his freshman year, which resulted in a national championship and impressive numbers from the youngster, Carmelo Anthony decided to enter the NBA Draft. And as history knows it, Melo was the third overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft. Though Anthony wouldn’t advise any college player to enter the Draft right after his freshman year, as he advised the same to his son.

I don’t even preach one-and-done to him, I don’t even want you to start thinking that right now--We ain’t rushing nothing, you going to college. If you have to stay for two, if you have to stay for three, we adapt as we go. If you ready to go after your first year, then we’ll look at it.

Carmelo Anthony said in February on his podcast

Anthony believes that it’s not just his son who should stay in college for more than a year; he thinks all basketball players should do the same. According to Anthony, players who enter the NBA after only one year or after playing in the NBA G League Ignite tend to struggle. He expressed that it’s challenging to evaluate young players who are 16 or 17 years old as professionals because they are still physically developing, learning the game, and understanding how to move on the court.

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