Carmelo Anthony announced his retirement after 19 seasons in the NBA. But during his illustrious career, he spent five days as a member of the Atlanta Hawks. Anthony’s Atlanta tenure was short, but legendary.
It all occurred following the 2018 season. The Hawks were in rebuild mode and looking to sign and draft as many young players as possible. Anthony, in the midst of his prime and still seeking to join a playoff team, would not have fit with the Hawks during their rebuilding process.
However, the Hawks possesed plenty of cap space at the time and was the perfect team to help facilitate a multi-team trade. Anthony finished an underwhelming season with the Oklahoma Thunder and was looking for a fresh start with a new team.
In July of 2018, the Thunder traded Anthony, Justin Anderson and a future first round pick to the Hawks for Dennis Schroder and Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot.
For five days, Anthony was an Atlanta Hawk, joining the ranks of legendary Hawks players such as Dominique Wilkins, Pete Maravich, and Lou Hudson.
But Anthony would buyout his contract by giving the Hawks back $2.4 million of his $27.9 million salary. He would eventually become a free agent and signed with Houston Rockets.
The Hawks would create a mock jersey with Anthony’s No. 15 and name. However, it would never be sold in the merchandise store and was only shared on social media.
So when Anthony announced his retirement on May 22, the Hawks social media team reposted Anthony’s jersey with the caption, “Hell of a career. Congrats, @carmeloanthony.” Anthony would respond with laughing emojis and the words, “All Love.”
🤣🤣🤣 ALL LOVE @ATLHawks https://t.co/2aRs7txs2V
— Carmelo Anthony (@carmeloanthony) May 22, 2023
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