Exclusive: Carmelo Anthony drops truth bomb on Knicks becoming Eastern Conference favorite to reach NBA Finals

Carmelo Anthony is very high on his former team, the New York Knicks. Anthony began his NBA career and emerged as a star with the Denver Nuggets in the 2000s. But it was with his hometown Knicks where he had arguably his most memorable tenure in the league.

It was with the Knicks that Anthony led the league in scoring for the first and only time in his career (2013). The 10-time All-Star also clinched six of his All-Star appearances with the Knicks while leading the franchise to its first playoff series in 13 seasons during the 2012-13 campaign.

Fast forward to the current Knicks, and they’re arguably the hottest team in the league. New York demolished the Atlanta Hawks in a series-clinching Game 6 win, 140-89. The game set records with its 47-point halftime lead, setting an NBA playoff record.

As the Knicks prepare for Game 3 against the seventh-seeded Philadelphia 76ers, New York is leading the series 2-0. It’s clear the team is playing at a different level compared to when they fell behind 2-1 in their first-round series against the Hawks. Anthony said the current Knicks team — which features All-Stars Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns — were “built” for this moment.

“Well, they were built for this moment,” Anthony said in a one-on-one interview of the Knicks. “They were built to win a championship, and that’s what everybody is seeing now and again. Throughout that journey, you go through the ups and downs, and what you’re seeing now is the team finally starting to come together at the right time. They found their identity at the right time. They’re playing great basketball at the right time, and everybody is happy. When you have that energy around you, this is what you see. You see the Knicks up 2-0 against Philadelphia in the second round.”

The Knicks have outplayed the Sixers through the early portion of the series, blowing them out in Game 1 by a score of 137-98. Game 2 was much closer, but New York outscored Philadelphia by seven points in the fourth quarter to win 108-102.

Brunson scored 35 points on 12-of-18 shooting, with Towns contributing nicely in a complementary role with 17 points and six assists. In Game 2, it was OG Anunoby who stepped up with 24 points, with Towns filling the stat sheet with 20 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists.

Since falling behind 2-1 against the Hawks, the Knicks have now won five consecutive games with their average margin of victory a scorching 28.2 points per game. With the No. 1-seeded Detroit Pistons up 2-0 in their series against the Cleveland Cavaliers, it would appear the Knicks are destined to match up with Detroit in the Eastern Conference Finals.

It’s worth mentioning that the Pistons won all three of their matchups over the Knicks in the regular season by blowout margins. Their average margin of victory was by 28 points per game. Despite that, Anthony believes the Knicks — not the Pistons — are the favorites in the East.

“I do believe they have a shot to get to the Finals,” said Anthony. “Depending on who it is over there, who knows at that point, but right now, they should be the favorite in the Eastern Conference.”

As Anthony watches the Knicks gain momentum in the playoffs, he’s teaming up with CeraVe as its new “Head Coach of Heads.” CeraVe is the NBA’s official skincare and haircare partner and recently partnered with Kevin Durant. The campaign sees Anthony destigmatizing the topic of dandruff while sharing his personal journey and motivation behind the “Hoodie Melo” look.

“The partnership — I’m speaking as an athlete — it conditions you to just push through everything,” said Anthony. “We don’t talk about taking care of ourselves. For me to get in partnership with CeraVe, for me it was organic. It was natural because I was ready to step out there to start having that conversation and letting people know that this is very important.

“For them to see the vision and understand what Hoodie Melo really was, it was more about a mindset,” Anthony continued. “You’re talking about the way we travel, where we sweat, the lights, the pressure, everything like that. We had to really lock in. Once CeraVe came to me with this head coach of a concept, the idea it hit.”

Multiple notable athletes have been involved in the CeraVe “Hoodie Melo” campaign, with the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Isaiah Hartenstein and Knicks’ Jose Alvarado spotted in tunnel walks wearing a graphic hoodie featuring a photo of “Hoodie Melo.”

“I do definitely want to give a shout out to Jose and Hartenstein because they pulled up and were a part of this campaign at the last second,” said Anthony. “We reached out to them, asked them to be a part of this. If I’m the head coach, they’re the assistant coaches.”

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