UPDATED 8/14/18 5:45 p.m. ET: On Tuesday, Carmelo was approached by a paparazzo who asked the NBA star if he was cool with coming off the bench. "Let's just let it play out," he replied.
See below for original story published on 8/13/18.
Remember that time, about a year ago, that Carmelo Anthony literally laughed out loud when a reporter asked whether he would come off the bench for the Oklahoma City Thunder?
Life comes at you fast. After a mostly rough year with the Thunder, it appears Melo will indeed occupy a reserve role for his new team, the Houston Rockets. That insight comes from a new report from ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
"The Rockets are expected to bring Anthony off the bench this season," Woj wrote.
ESPN later updated the report to state: "Anthony will have a chance to compete for a starting spot in training camp, but could ultimately come off the bench based on whatever Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni decides is best for the team."
The probable explanation for the update is this: Woj gathered insight that Houston plans to bring Melo off the bench, then reported it. His source(s) then likely reached back out to say, the outcome is not definite. In other words: Melo's new team probably doesn't want him thinking they're 100 percent planning on him being the sixth man—even if that is their real desire.
Last season, Melo played in 78 games and averaged 16.2 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game. He connected on 35.7 percent of his attempts from downtown. It was his worst season as a pro, but it wasn't a total failure—still, it was clear both sides needed to move on this summer.
The Thunder sent Melo to the Atlanta Hawks, who bought out his contract, freeing him up to sign a minimum deal with the Rockets.
