DALLAS — The juvenile Melo has grown up; the grown-up coach has mellowed.
Five years into their relationship, the Nuggets’ Carmelo Anthony and George Karl are together at the NBA All-Star Game, if not as BFFs, at least as collegial colleagues.
They still bicker, but their relationship is “better now,” explained Anthony, who then flashed a smile and added, “Much better.”
Both sides have worked hard to patch up what admittedly was a strained relationship.
“We’ve found ourselves communicating a lot better — and a lot more often — than we ever did,” Anthony said. “I know when he first came, for some reason — I can’t even tell you why — we didn’t speak for weeks for some reason. But now the communication lines are open on both ends.”
The only way Karl will win a title is if he gets Anthony to play his best. The only way Anthony will win a title is if Karl coaches his best. They both seem to know it.
“It’s a unified thing,” Karl said. “How he helps me — and how I help him — is very important.”
They’re now working more in tandem, rather than picking at perceived weaknesses.
“It’s evolved into them accepting each other for what they are — their faults, their positives, their negatives,” Nuggets assistant coach Chad Iske said. “Yeah, they both get on each other’s nerves, like any relationship, but they both have the common goals in the end, and they trust in each other enough that they’re going to help each other try to get to that goal.”
Melo can be difficult to coach. He is the franchise, after all. And Karl is proud. He’s been an NBA head coach since 1984, the year Anthony was born.
“When I came here, there were a lot of people who didn’t think we would work together,” said Karl, who will coach Anthony and the Western Conference team in tonight’s All-Star Game. “They thought that Melo was this and I was this, but it’s turned out to be a relationship that’s been respectful and more harmonious than ever before.”
Communication key
It’s not as if Karl is blowing up Melo’s cell or Melo is texting George to update Utah Jazz scores. But, they do talk one-on-one almost daily, usually before practices or shootarounds. Karl prefers daily “five-minute” chats as opposed to an occasional long, drawn-out discussion. Ask those around the team each day and they see Anthony paying more attention to the coach’s words, in meetings or huddles during a game.
Yes, they’ll occasionally disagree, especially when Karl doesn’t like a shot Melo has hoisted or doesn’t feel his star has gotten back on defense. As Karl said, “We’ve had our hills and valleys, but after last year, and the commitment he’s brought to this year, there’s no question that we think we can be the best.”
Only the Cavaliers, Magic and Lakers have a better record at the break than the Nuggets (35-18). Anthony is brimming with confidence, averaging 29.2 points and 6.4 rebounds. And Karl is having one of his better seasons too, be it weathering injury issues or calming his team’s Texas- sized personas, be it Kenyon Martin, J.R. Smith or his big-time small forward.
“They’re competitive guys, they have faith in themselves and want to put it on their own shoulders to win and be successful,” Iske said. “And, as a coach, you have to look at the bigger picture, not just what they want all the time.
“But George has been around long enough, dealt with enough players, that you have to let them get out their burst of unhappiness, know it’s heat of the moment, and know they’ll be ready to go back in and play hard.”
A work in progress
With Anthony, one of the issues he’s clashed with Karl about is his decision-making when double-teamed.
But as opponents double- team him more and more, Anthony often tries to take his defenders to the hoop. He gets to the free-throw line at a high rate, yes, but there are some games where he will miss a layup or a contested jumper because of a smothering defense.
“You have such high expectations for him, when the shots aren’t dropping and the passes aren’t finding the right guy, it’s easy to get frustrated,” Iske said. “If he’s not getting (foul) calls, and he thinks he’s making the right play, it’s a kind of a difference of opinions sometimes, and they’ll bicker about that. George thinks he’s got to play more with the pass, Melo will say — ‘I’m getting fouled in there, I’m trying to make the play and they’re not calling it.’ But it’s a better relationship because they can bicker with each other about it and then go (on). It’s two competitors.”
An ongoing concern of Karl’s is Melo’s defense, which has gotten better in the past couple of years but, as some might say, couldn’t have gotten worse.
Melo works harder at that end but often struggles in transition and switching. Making Melo an all-around player — not just a scoring champion — is a work in progress.
Yes, the talks about defense can be tense, but at least the two sides are talking.
As for their rapport, Karl said: “It’s as good as it’s been since I’ve been here. I don’t think there’s anything that holds him back from me or me back from him. A few years ago, there were days when I had to talk to him, it was work. And maybe he said the same about me.”
Benjamin Hochman: 303-954-1294 or bhochman@denverpost.com
