“Michael Jordan was the culture. He was basketball and inspired me to get up and play.” Carmelo Anthony has always put Michael Jordan as his number 1 inspiration. Even during the GOAT debate, Melo doesn’t hesitate to put His Airness above LeBron James. But recently, the former Knicks star had a different opinion about MJ and him being on the list. This stemmed from the comment from Trae Young when he opined that the Bulls legend won’t be in his starting 5.

“The reason why I hate lists is because certain people don’t deserve to be on lists. Like MJ don’t supposed to be on lists.” Yes, Carmelo Anthony said it because he felt that MJ shouldn’t be compared to anybody. Melo said on the 7PM in Brooklyn podcast, “F*ck them lists. Give me a five without them ni**as. Let’s separate a bunch of those guys. We all know who the, the Bron is on the, you know what I mean? Like, let’s not. We ain’t gotta keep putting them guys on the lists.”

The list debate started when Hawks star Young gave his starting 5 without Michael Jordan. “In history, I got to have Bean at two, Kobe at my two… Mike’s my sixth man.. If I wasn’t starting, I put Mike in my place. I can’t put him at three, cuz that’s KD’s spot, that’s one of my idols.” To be fair with the 3x All-Star, he was asked to name four other players alongside him. Plus, his allegiance to Kobe Bryant is very similar to that of Melo and MJ.

Apart from Michael Jordan and his Bulls run, Anthony was also a fan of the Wizards era. Here, the 6x NBA Champion was 38 years old, yet that run left a mark on young Melo. The Syracuse alum said, “Like, he don’t look, you know, he’s not MJ of all. Like, he’s not MJ flying through the air, but the game looks so easy to him.”

Even in those two seasons, MJ kept his average of more than 20 points (21.2). But wouldn’t it be ironic that a few months ago, Carmelo Anthony left out Michael Jordan on his list? And not for the reasons listed above.

Carmelo Anthony kept Michael Jordan out of his list once

In August, the former Knicks star was asked about his All-Time USA 5. “Myself, Durant, LeBron, Kobe. Michael Jordan would be that [fifth player], but for the USA, I would put Barkley,” Melo said. He argued that the 6x Finals MVP had lesser Olympic and national team experience than Charles Barkley. “But the fact that he only played in that one Olympics…”

Yes, Michael Jordan was part of the 1992 Dream Team but Melo forgot that MJ played in the Olympics before as well. For the 1984 Olympics, where only collegiate athletes were allowed as per Team USA guidelines, Jordan won Gold. He also averaged 17.1 points. That’s why he was hesitant to be part of the 1992 Olympics.

Interestingly, Carmelo Anthony missed out on Michael Jordan’s achievement and left him out of his list. Maybe he would have seen his clip about his All-Time USA 5 and decided it’s better not to repeat that mistake. Even Young’s choice of Kobe Bryant over MJ was not wrong because the Hawks’ star had a strong bond with the Lakers legend.

Stay tuned for more such updates and join us for the exciting second episode of the “Dual Threat Show” as our host BG12 sits down with Georgia Bulldogs star and Mountain West All-Freshman Team Selection, Asia Avinger.