Sabrina B.

It’s generally understood and accepted that Carmelo Anthony’s refusal to buy into his system pushed Mike D’Antoni out of New York this season. However, the Knicks’ forward claims there are no hard feelings between the two men, and Anthony says he’s excited to team up with D’Antoni to go for Gold. Per the NY Daily News:

“Mike D’Antoni did not attend Carmelo Anthony’s SoHo birthday celebration Friday morning. The two were not the best of friends during their 73 games together in New York. But Anthony anticipates an affable reunion when he and D’Antoni meet for the U.S. Olympic basketball team’s first practice on July 6 in Las Vegas. ‘It’ll be good to reunite with him,’ Anthony said Monday at a midtown event promoting USA Basketball and Jeep. ‘When he left there wasn’t any bad blood between me and him.’

Anthony has mostly relaxed following the Knicks’ first-round loss to the Miami Heat and the scrutiny he received during the series. He spent two weeks away from the gym after the Game 5 loss, and celebrated his 28th birthday around town last week. ‘I got a lot of flak for a lot of stuff,’ he said. Anthony is ‘back in the lab’ preparing for the London Olympics and hopes for a repeat of 2008, when he and D’Antoni, an assistant coach, helped the U.S. capture gold in Beijing. ‘He was a big part of the ’08 win, and he’s there again,’ Anthony said. ‘I’m actually excited about going over there and trying to win a gold medal with him again.’”

SLAMONLINE