NBA Rumors: Carmelo Anthony Not In Consideration For Team USA Roster

The mass withdrawal of top NBA star from Team USA set to compete in the FIBA World Cup in China has been alarming with head coach Gregg Popovich forced to expand their search on other available cagers willing to represent the country. Experience in international competition could be a factor but it appears this criterion will also be under scrutiny.

One name that cropped up is Carmelo Anthony, someone who is still waiting to see if his NBA career will resume this coming season. He has been out of action for some time now although some personalities believe that the 35-year-old has plenty left in the tank. With big names like Anthony Davis, James Harden and Kevin Love pulling out, he could be a key addition if USA Basketball would consider him for a slot. And while it does make sense to a few, it looks like this is not happening.

Sources told Shams Charania of Stadium that even with the alarming pullout of several top NBA stars, Anthony is unlikely to get a Team USA invite. He explains that the team is not headed in that direction and will not consider it. Anthony's inclusion to USA Basketball was previously suggested by Dave McMenamin of ESPN via The Jump.

"One player that the basketball community has talked about in terms of addition is Carmelo Anthony. He's one of the best Olympic players of all time, one of the best scorers ever to play in the NBA, so why not bring him back, allow him an opportunity to re-prove himself? But I'm told Team USA will not go in that direction, will not consider that option," he said.

And while it was not said, the same case may hold true for other top free agents in the market. That includes J.R. Smith who has yet to latch on to a team after being officially waived by the Cleveland Cavaliers recently. One team that has been rumored of getting the 33-year-old swingman is the Houston Rockets.

For both Anthony and Smith, the big question is their conditioning. Both sat out large chunks of the 2018-19 NBA season and such is a point that some teams are expected to look at. Hence, it may hardly come as a surprise why Melo is not in play for Team USA because he has not played since November - the time when he parted ways, ironically, with the Rockets.