Carmelo Anthony Says this Season ‘Ain’t a Damn Farewell Tour’

Carmelo Anthony has no intentions of retiring after this season He said as much while speaking The Athletic’s Shams Charania recently.

“This ain’t a damn farewell tour,” Anthony said about his current stint with the Portland Trail Blazers and the creeping notion that it’s his NBA swan song. “My love for the game don’t stop. I don’t know where this ‘farewell tour’ thing came from. I’ve never talked about a farewell tour. I know what I can do and I believe in myself. When a farewell tour comes, it comes. That’s not something I think about. I’m not thinking about retiring right now.”

Although he did admit to toying with the idea of retirement during his year away from the game, Melo isn’t ready to hang up his jersey just yet. He feels as though he can be a productive player for years to come. That impact was on full display during Monday’s matchup against the Bulls. Not only did ‘Melo pour in 25 points on his way to becoming the no. 18 scorer in NBA history, but he also laid down a thunderous dunk.

In his post-game interview, Anthony hinted that this kind of performance could become the norm for him now that he’s finally recovered from having a year off. 

“I’m starting to get my feel and my flow back,” he said. “I’m just taking it one day at a time. That last game in Cleveland I was flat. For me, it was like three games in four nights coming off a year of vacation. But tonight just felt like I had my bop, had my bounce, had my pop.”