When LeBron James made his move to the power forward position last season, things changed drastically – in a championship winning way – for the Heat. There aren’t too many small forwards that are versatile enough to play both small forward and the power forward positions: the difference in physicality is simply too significant to handle for most.
Another three that is capable of playing the four – and creating havoc in the process – is New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony. He, by far, tasted the greatest amount of success at Madison Square Garden last season while playing the power forward position due to Amare Stoudemire’s injury. Just how good was he? He averaged 29.8 points on 49.5 percent shooting, 7.3 rebounds and 3.6 assists in 12 April games. And oh, the numbers dropped down across the board again when Stoudemire returned in late April as Anthony switched back to his natural position.
Anthony may not like playing the role of a big man, but with Stoudemire out once again, it’s probably in the team’s best interest for him to sacrifice – something he has harped about in the preseason. The only question is, can he elevate the level of his team the way James did for the Heat by taking advantage of the opportunities created by playing a different position? It all depends on how far Anthony is willing to explore his game. He could never impact the game the way James does on the defensive end, but is capable of being just as dominant offensively. See how he feels about the situation, along with other noteworthy items from Tuesday below:
- Carmelo Anthony will man the power forward position while Amare Stoudemire is out, something he wasn’t in favor of doing earlier in the preseason. Frank Isola of New York Daily News has details: