NBA: Carmelo Anthony, Shawn Kemp Among Best Players He's Had Despite Conflicts, Says Former Coach

KEY POINTS

Former George Karl named Carmelo Anthony and Ray Allen in his top starters
Shawn Kemp, Chauncey Billups, and Gary Payton also made the list
Karl coached 1,999 games in the NBA since 1984 but never won a championship

Former NBA coach George Karl isn’t coaching in the NBA for around four years but he’s been in numerous NBA battles for over three decades. Coaching numerous games in the NBA isn’t an easy feat at all.

The legendary coach just recently posted on his Twitter account where he was asked about his best starting five among the players that he’s handled and when you have been coaching since 1984, you know that he will have a very wide range of options and those players needed to make a mark for the coach to remember their impact while playing him.

As his response, he named Gary Payton, Shawn Kemp, Chauncey Billups, Ray Allen, and Carmelo Anthony, the only active player on the list who plays for the Portland Trail Blazers. He’s handled Payton and Kemp during his tenure with Seattle, Allen in Milwaukee, and Billups and Anthony in Denver.

Got asked to name my “top 5 starters.” Tough to name just 5!! Here goes:

- Gary @GaryPayton_
- Shawn @sk40_reignman
- Melo @carmeloanthony
- Chauncey @1MrBigShot
- Ray Allen

Alternates on here may include Joe Barry Carroll and World B. Free! Great players in their day!
— George Karl (@CoachKarl22) March 23, 2020

On the list that he’s made, it is notable that he’s had a history of conflicts with a couple of players – Kemp and Melo. Kemp, a six-time NBA All-Star, was one of the stars for the Supersonics but other than the conflicts, a potential trade between “The Reignman” and Scottie Pippen was being planned under his care but it didn’t materialize after rumors came out and the public didn’t like the idea. In an article published on Complex, the trade was approved by Michael Jordan but didn’t push through for some reason.

Melo, on the other hand, was coached by Karl during his entire stint with the Nuggets, where he was picked third overall in 2003 NBA Draft after LeBron James and Darko Milicic. One of the deadliest perimeter shooters in the game, Karl demanded the young Anthony to attach the basket more than settling for jump shots. He requested a trade and was sent to the New York Knicks in 2011, ending his relationship with the intense-head coach.

Other than the teams mentioned, the 68-year old Karl also coached the Cleveland Cavaliers, Golden State Warriors, and the Sacramento Kings, which turns out to be the last team that he will steer after getting fired before supposed to be his 2,000^th NBA game.