Like his father before him, Kiyan Anthony will play college basketball at Syracuse. Anthony, 17, is the son of Carmelo Anthony, who cemented his legend with the Orange by leading them to a national championship as a freshman in 2002-03.
Anthony, a 6-foot-4 shooting guard from Long Island Lutheran High School in Brookville, New York, is rated by Rivals as the No. 48 player nationally and No. 15 at his position.
During the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) Top 100 Camp summer camp, Anthony averaged 28.5 points per game, the best of all players. In the spring, he averaged 19.6 points for Team Melo on the Nike EYBL circuit.
Syracuse offered Anthony a scholarship two years ago, along with 17 other schools, including Tennessee, Indiana, Illinois, Rutgers, Auburn, USC, Arizona State and Ohio State. He officially announced his choice on Carmelo’s podcast “7PM in Brooklyn” on Friday.
“In the end, only one could stay,” Kiyan said, with his mother also on the show for the big announcement. “And with that being said, I will be committed to Syracuse University.”
On the podcast, Carmelo dismissed the idea that his son will be under pressure to live up to his father’s legacy at Syracuse.
“My message to him was don’t be afraid of it, embrace it,” he said. “The guys who looked at me, who looked at me, are not your fans. You have the opportunity to build a whole new fan base. My [time] was 20 years ago. …You have a new fan base, you have new energy.”
Nevertheless, fans and media will no doubt bring up Carmelo’s performance at Syracuse before Kiyan begins his college career. During his lone season with the Orange, Carmelo averaged 22.2 points and 10 rebounds per game as Syracuse finished 30-5 and won the program’s first national title.
He went on to play 19 seasons in the NBA, averaging 22.5 points and 6.2 rebounds for the Denver Nuggets, New York Knicks, Portland Trail Blazers, Oklahoma City Thunder, Los Angeles Lakers and Houston Rockets.
