Isolation Specialist: Featuring Carmelo Anthony

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SteemSports Presenter:@dwin0603

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SteemSports Editor:@scottybuckets

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Hello basketball fans! I am here today to have some basketball talk with you and my topic for today is about the best isolation players in NBA history. Today I will feature Carmelo Anthony of the Houston Rockets. Let’s get started!

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Melo’s Background

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I will not elaborate most of his history here, I will just give some of my insights about his skills and what makes him so good in offense. And will also tell you few of his achievements just for some additional info. Carmelo Anthony is one of the best isolation players in NBA history. He’s the 3rd overall pick in the 2003 NBA draft, or should I say arguably the best draft class in NBA history. He is currently in his 16th season and has been named NBA Scoring Champion in 2013. He’s a 6-time All-NBA Selection and a 10-time all-star. He’s led his college team to the national championships back in 2003 and he’s the All-time leader in points in the Olympics for team USA.

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Melo’s Physique

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Now let’s talk about a little of his physique. Melo is standing at 6 ft. 8 in. weighing 240 lbs. today. Slightly far from his 230 lbs. weight back in his Denver Nuggets days. Melo looks chubby now, far from his very athletic look back in his rookie seasons. Melo is a very quick and athletic forward who can match LeBron James in quickness in his younger days. Melo is also a bruiser who loves bully ball that can dominate the painted area. He’s so strong that he creates a mismatch even his defender is as the same height as him or even bigger. But that was in his younger days. Today all his quickness and athleticism are gone. His strength is still there but not as strong as he was back then.

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Melo’s Skills

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Melo is so smart when facing up his defender. He first measures the situation and how the opponent is defending him. The triple-threat is most useful for him and very fit with his attributes. He will test out his opponent by performing a jab step or sometimes using a pump-fake and when the defender slightly retreats or even back off a little, he will surely pull up. And what makes that dangerous is his deadeye mid-range shooting. That’s also very effective for him using a pump-fake. If he was able to sold the fake and the defender immediately reacts, he will blow by pass the defender or step-back for a jumper. Melo’s fake also can be a trap because opponents don’t tend to heavily contest his shot because they were thinking that he will pump-fake the ball so his shots will be less-contested. And if Melo doesn’t sell the fake or the jab step, he will read his opponents motion to know if he can use his quickness to possibly blow by his defender. He sells the jab step so efficiently because he does it while moving his whole body together with his jab step. That way, the defender will think that he will make a move.

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You can see in the video what I’m talking about:

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Another great feat of Melo’s skill is his ball protection. If you see him play. When he is facing up the opponent, he always starts with the ball up in his head while analyzing the situation, then he brings it down to one side where it is well protected but at the same time, he can pull-up immediately even if the ball was too low. And the trickiest part in this is Melo putting the ball to a position where the opponent will not expect him to shoot or even make a move.

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One of my favorite Melo signature moves is when he put back his non-pivot foot then explosively drives to the basket using his quickness. If you’re watching basketball for a long time and you’ve watched Melo a lot, you will immediately know what I’m saying. He can also shoot the jumper after he backs his foot so the defender could not react quickly.

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One of his biggest assets is his post-game. That is where he’s best at and that is what he loves doing the most. Melo in the post is so dangerous that when he knows that the defender is slightly far, he can immediately think before catching the ball to shoot the it at an instant the moment he receives it. If the opponent gives a little space, he will immediately pull the jumper. If the defender is not in front of him or if he feels that the defender is on one side, he will immediately attack the weak side using a spin move.

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Melo has a variety of moves including a fade-away jumper, a turnaround jumper, a step-back or sometimes a one-legged fade away and the shimmy which is very tricky for the defender. He love’s the turnaround jumper and sometimes I look at him like he’s more comfortable shooting a turnaround jumper than a fadeaway or a step back. Melo is also a great finisher using his strong body and a technique to shield the ball from defenders trying to block his shots. He opens up his elbow every time he finishes to the rim so that the opponent will have a hard time blocking the shot.

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Melo is also a good rebounder. Especially in getting his own miss. When he drives to the rim, he uses his body towards the opponent and that makes the opponent out of position so if he misses the shot, he can get it again for an easy layup. Melo uses both of his feet when jumping in order to absorb more contact and allows him to change direction or hang for a double-clutch. Anthony is a good shooter even with the ball. He can create his own shot with his average dribbling skills. When he is looking to drive to the rim, he analyzes his defender very well. If the defender was defending him sideways as he drives then he stops and pulls up so that the opponent cannot contest his shot because of its momentum while running towards the rim.

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Here are some of Melo’s post moves:

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Anthony has a nice shooting form which helps him to be a great shooter. Straight up high in the air and his release is well controlled when at the top slowing down after he jumps releasing with a straight up follow through. Today, Melo has passed his prime and meeting father time. He’s role now in Houston is more of a catch up shooter.

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All in all, Melo’s overall game is very unique in the NBA today. He was once the best scorer in the league. His post moves and triple-threat are one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever watched in basketball. I miss those moves. I think no one still wants to be that type of player anymore. The game played today is all about the three-point shot. Clearly Steph Curry changes the game and he’s a very big influence in today’s generation.

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Thank you for following @steemsports and you can find me @dwin0603

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