The Oklahoma City Thunder have seen many great players pass through their franchise in the 15 seasons they have played in Bricktown. With future Hall of Famers lining the stat sheets for the OKC Thunder, it is no surprise that a 27-year-old Patrick Mahomes would pick a former OKC Thunder star as his All-Time favorite NBA player.
The Thunder franchise was at a crossroads after Kevin Durant left the OKC Thunder to join the Golden State Warriors. Russell Westbrook willed that Oklahoma City team to the playoffs the very next season on the back of a triple-double average and MVP season. Sam Presti remained committed to building around Westbrook following that season and made the shocking trade for Paul George, who seemed destined for L.A.
Kansas City Chiefs Star quarterback Patrick Mahomes tabs former OKC Thunder star as his All-Time favorite player.
While acquiring Paul George was a blockbuster deal, Sam Presti was not finished. Later that same summer, he convinced one of the best scorers in NBA history, Carmelo Anthony, to waive his no-trade clause and accept a move to Oklahoma City.
Despite how the Carmelo Anthony season went, it remains a massive moment in franchise history just to get him on a bird to Bricktown. This future Hall of Famer who demanded his way to his hometown of New York City years prior and owned a no-trade clause picked us? This flyover state filled with plains? It reassured the NBA and the community that the OKC Thunder were not going anywhere. That move remains one of the most impactful in team history for what it signified.
Patrick Mahome’s favorite basketball player growing up? Carmelo Anthony (h/t @NFLonNBC)
— CTRL the Narrative (@ctrlnarrative) September 2, 2023
“I was a Carmelo Anthony fan, I was going the other way. Everybody was a LeBron fan so I loved LeBron but at the same time I wanted to have that guy.” pic.twitter.com/NhEjDDuK83
Kansas City Chiefs star quarterback Patrick Mahomes explained that former Oklahoma City Thunder forward Carmelo Anthony is his all-time favorite NBA player.
Carmelo Anthony’s career dialog can get a bit muddy. There is a generation of fans who never saw peak Melo, there is a subsection of fans who ding him for never winning an NBA Championship, and there is a group of fans who did not like the one-sided nature of his game.
For all his perceived flaws, Carmelo Anthony is one of the best players ever to grace the hardwood. That is why he ranks as arguably an all-time favorite player of the best quarterback ever to do it, Patrick Mahomes.
While Carmelo Anthony, of course, made his name long before his Oklahoma City tenure, in fact, you could make a case for his Bricktown stint to be the worst of his career; it still continues to amaze how many of the legends to play this sport passed through town.