A debate has emerged amongst NBA followers concerning which No. 15 jersey the Denver Nuggets ought to finally retire and hold within the Ball Area rafters – Carmelo Anthony’s or Nikola Jokic’s?
The dialog intensified following Carmelo Anthony‘s current induction into the Naismith Basketball Corridor of Fame. The NBA’s ninth all-time main scorer loved a stellar profession in Denver, the place he performed from 2003 to 2011.
Throughout his Denver Nuggets tenure, Anthony earned 4 All-Star picks and 4 All-NBA workforce honors, cementing himself as one of many franchise’s best gamers.
Melo rapidly turned a fan favourite within the Mile Excessive Metropolis, main the Nuggets to the Western Convention Finals through the 2008-09 season, marking their finest playoff run since 1985 earlier than Nikola Jokic‘s period.
His scoring prowess and talent to raise the franchise from lottery workforce to perennial playoff contender left an indelible mark on Nuggets historical past.
Nevertheless, the present Nuggets celebrity sporting No. 15 has constructed an arguably even larger legacy.
Jokic has established himself as maybe the best participant in franchise historical past, delivering Denver’s first-ever NBA Championship in 2023 whereas gathering three MVP awards alongside the best way.
The Serbian heart’s unprecedented success whereas sporting the identical quantity as Anthony has created a singular state of affairs for the group’s future jersey retirement plans.
When ESPN posed the query on their Instagram about which No. 15 deserves to be retired, Anthony himself joined the dialog.
“Put each up lol,” he commented.
Anthony elaborated on why each jerseys might coexist within the rafters: “Two completely different kind of gamers. No comparisons solely respect. Put his quantity up there. It ought to by no means be a comparability. We don’t even have the identical play model. I had my time and period, he had his.”
The stylish response additional solidified Anthony’s standing as an envoy for the sport past his Corridor of Fame taking part in profession.
The Nuggets gained’t have to make this determination anytime quickly, as Jokić is simply 30 years previous and seems to have many extra productive seasons forward in Denver.
Nevertheless, when that point finally comes, there’s actually precedent for Anthony’s suggestion. A number of NBA franchises have retired the identical quantity for a number of gamers, comparable to New York Knicks (No. 15 for Dick McGuire and Earl Monroe) and Portland Path Blazers (No. 30 for Bob Gross and Terry Porter).
Given each gamers’ contributions to elevating the franchise, Anthony’s want to see each legendary No. 15 jerseys hanging side-by-side in Denver may sometime change into actuality.