Carmelo Anthony Gives Teenage Cancer Patient a Free New Kia Car Before Celtics-Knicks Game

Carmelo Anthony gifted a car to a 17-year-old who suffers from a rare form of cancer called Langerhan's Cell Histiocytosis.

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Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

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Contrary to George Karl's egregious claim in his new memoir about Carmelo Anthony being a "user" of people, the Knicks superstar showed that he's a philanthropist with a big heart on Christmas Day.

According to ESPN, Melo gave 17-year-old fan Jarell Lara a brand new silver Kia in the basement of Madison Square Garden before the Celtics-Knicks game's tipoff today. In the clip above, you can see Anthony, Jarell, and his mother Anne give each other an emotional group hug.

Lara suffers from a rare form of cancer called Langerhan's Cell Histiocytosis. The car donation came as part of the partnership between the Knicks' Garden of Dreams Foundation and his own Carmelo Anthony Foundation.

Melo spoke about the reason for the car giveaway, "This is bigger than sports... making a family happy, making a dream come true, giving them a day of happiness."

Anne Lara was sobbing tears of joy during the heartfelt moment. "I can't even stop crying," she stated. "It's amazing."

Due to Jarell's diagnosis and required 18-month chemotheraphy treatment to combat the disease, Anne left her job to look after her son's health. Jarell recently completed the treatment, and his father, Fernando, decided to move the Lara family from Washington Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn to take a construction job in the South Bronx in order to pay Jarell's medical bills.

After recently getting his driver's permit, Jarell can stunt around New York City in his brand new Kia while rocking a Knicks jersey.

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