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NBA star Carmelo Anthony retires after 19 seasons

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:

NBA star Carmelo Anthony announced Monday that he's retiring in a video posted to Twitter.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

CARMELO ANTHONY: My purpose was strong - my communities, the cities I represented with pride and the fans that supported me along the way. I am forever grateful for those people and places.

SHAPIRO: Over 19 seasons, Anthony made a name for himself with his grace, athleticism and bullying physical prowess, says The Athletic's Mike Vorkunov.

MIKE VORKUNOV: He had a great pull-up jumper that he could use from anywhere on the court. He could go into the post and the jab step was just kind of a signature Carmelo Anthony move, where he would keep the ball, keep a pivot foot and jab his other foot out to try to create space.

JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:

He played for several teams over the course of his career, but Vorkunov says many fans will most fondly remember his days playing for the New York Knicks, where he led the team to its most successful season in decades. In a 2014 game, he even made a little history.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED SPORTSCASTER: Thirty-seven first-half points.

SHAPIRO: While playing for the Knicks, Anthony set a record for the most points ever scored at Madison Square Garden.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED SPORTSCASTER: That shot is good - Carmelo Anthony with the greatest-scoring game in Knicks history.

VORKUNOV: That one night really encapsulated the full Carmelo Anthony experience. He scored 62 points, but he had zero assists, right? Which could be emblematic of the style of play for him, which was much more individualistic than it was team-oriented, which was a criticism of his.

SUMMERS: Anthony never secured an NBA championship title, but he made up for that in Olympic wins. Anthony retires with three gold medals, more than any other men's basketball player.

(SOUNDBITE OF GHOSTFACE KILLAH SONG, "ALL THAT I GOT IS YOU") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.

Juana Summers is a political correspondent for NPR covering race, justice and politics. She has covered politics since 2010 for publications including Politico, CNN and The Associated Press. She got her start in public radio at KBIA in Columbia, Mo., and also previously covered Congress for NPR.
Kai McNamee
Ari Shapiro has been one of the hosts of All Things Considered, NPR's award-winning afternoon newsmagazine, since 2015. During his first two years on the program, listenership to All Things Considered grew at an unprecedented rate, with more people tuning in during a typical quarter-hour than any other program on the radio.