In a podcast called “7 PM in Brooklyn”, hosted by Carmelo Anthony, the NBA legend revealed he felt sad when the Denver Nuggets decided to give jersey number 15 to Nikola Jokic.

Carmelo Anthony has 19 seasons playing in the NBA. The first eight years of this extraordinary career were spent playing with the Denver Nuggets, and he became well-known for wearing shirt number 15. As a result, he saw the Denver Nuggets’ decision to give Nikola Jokic this shirt number as an act of disdain, as if they were attempting to erase his previous efforts.

“I thought that was a disrespectful choice. Nikola Jokic deserves to wear number 15, so of course he can. But it appears to me that the Denver Nuggets wish to forget about the number 15 shirt I wore during my time as a player. What they want is when it comes to number 15 for the Denver Nuggets, it’s Nikola Jokic,” stated Carmelo Anthony.

Carmelo Anthony is unhappy because there was a period in his career when he was adored for being the Denver Nuggets’ top player and wearing a number 15 shirt. Carmelo Anthony, who was chosen third overall in the 2003 NBA Draft, averaged 24.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 3.1 assists throughout his eight seasons as a member of the Colorado squad.

At the Cleveland Cavaliers at the time, Carmelo Anthony was hailed as a hero and a player who could compete on an equal footing with LeBron James. But following a string of confrontations with the team’s management, Carmelo Anthony transferred to the New York Knicks in the 2010–11 season, and everything completely changed. Carmelo Anthony’s decision caused Denver Nuggets supporters to see him as a betrayer.

Carmelo Anthony asserted, nonetheless, that he was amicable with the supporters, saying, “I never said anything bad about you (Nuggets fans).” You folks only make me feel bad. Even when I score forty or fifty points in a game, you folks don’t get why I’m getting booed. You guys believe that I’m a disgruntled player who wants to leave the squad. Because of that and what the media published in the newspapers, you were jeered.”

What made Nikola Jokic select shirt number fifteen?

For most of his career, Nikola Jokic wore the number 15 jersey. Above all, he made the incredibly surprising decision to wear shirt number 15.

When Nikola Jokic was a member of Serbia’s youth team, he reportedly wore shirt number 15. According to the old FIBA rules, he was the tallest player and, at the time, the number 15 was the largest jersey number in the system that ran from 4 to 15.