Carmelo Anthony Explains Why He & Phil Jackson’s Relationship Didn’t Work in NY

Carmelo Anthony’s time as a New York Knick was bitter sweet. It had it’s good and bad, with a ton of disfunction. Most of that disfunction sits at the feet of Phil Jackson.

Anthony was on the 100th episode of the “All the Smoke” podcast with Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson and talked about his relationship with Jackson.

The hall of fame coach took over the front office in 2014 and that’s when Anthony said everything changed. Jackson reportedly cut off the line of communication between the front office, coaches and the players.

“When Phil came, it was just like, he cut that line of communication off from me with the front office, from the staff members, even players,” he said. “I’m like, ‘Damn, you talking to him about me, you going to him, talking to him about you. But I’m right here.’ The minute that I knew that was the game that was being played, like nah.”

Anthony also said there has been no closure between him and Jackson since.

“I don’t need closure,” said Anthony. “I stood tall during my time, so it is what it is. You feel the way you feel about me, you say what you gotta say about me. I know if I had a sit-down with you, you wouldn’t say that. You’d say something totally different. You’re gonna tell me something like, ‘Oh, it wasn’t like that.’ I ain’t really got time for that. I don’t need it at this point.”

It’s clear Anthony wouldn’t be reaching out to Jackson anytime soon to patch things up. These days, Anthony is focusing and training towards this upcoming season with the Los Angeles Lakers in hopes of winning his first championship.