Carmelo Anthony Tried to Convince Pistons to Draft Him
To this day, the 2003 NBA draft class is seen as one of the best ever. The Detroit Pistons are part of this history, but for the wrong reasons.
The 2003 class is headline by multiple Hall of Fame talents. Some of the top names include LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Carmelo Anthony, and Chris Bosh. During a recent interview, one of these players talked about how they tried to end up in Detroit that year.
The Pistons had the second overall pick in 2003 draft, and ended up selecting European big man Darko Milicic. However, if Anthony had it his way, it would have been him.
While speaking with Dwyane Wade on his podcast, Anthony touched on how he wanted the Pistons to take him with the No. 2 pick. He ran around the city of Detroit looking for Milicic in hopes of working out with him. That said, he never got the opportunity.
Milicic ended up playing just two-and-a-half seasons with the Pistons before being dealt to the Orlando Magic. During his time in Detroit, he averaged 1.6 PPG and 1.2 RPG.
As for Anthony, he ended up falling to the Denver Nuggets at pick No. 3. From there, he'd go on to become a 10-time All-Star and lead the league in scoring on one occasion. Anthony officially retired in 2022 after one season with the LA Lakers.
This decision ended up drastically changing the trajectory of the Pistons franchise. They were already on the cusp of winning a championship at the time of this draft. If they had selected one of these future Hall of Famers, they might have been able to form of dynasty in the late 2000s.
