Cole Anthony reckons the basketball gods were on his side as the ex-NBA man produced a stunning Melbourne United debut that has sent shockwaves through the NBL.
In his first real hitout in 207 days, the 26-year-old destroyed a Cairns Taipans outfit that was, admittedly, an NBL team in name only, pouring in 27 points in 24 minutes on the back of five three-pointers, laced with five assists, four rebounds and three steals.
Forget gods and stats for a moment — on Saturday night, it was immediately clear Anthony’s speed, bounce, athleticism, anticipation, IQ and skills are clearly at NBA level and looked a cut above every other player who took the floor.
And the scariest thing for the nine other NBL clubs? Minutes after the final buzzer sounded, Anthony revealed he did all his work well below peak fitness.
“I’m going to keep it a buck, this was solid but, I promise you, I’m out of shape,” Anthony told Code Sports.
“I’ve been running every day after practice and I’m going to keep that up, but we’ve got a long way to go.
“I feel like I’m still getting my legs under me and I need more conditioning but, once I get that, it’s going to be a fun season.”
The last time Anthony bounced a ball in a “real” game was way back on February 3, when he had four points, five assists and three rebounds in 12 minutes to help the Milwaukee Bucks defeat a Josh Giddey-less Chicago Bulls 131-115 — in front of a sold-out crowd of over 17,000 at Milwaukee’s Fiserv Forum.
Seven months on, the location couldn’t have been a more polar opposite — Cranbourne in Melbourne’s south-eastern suburbs.
But the some 1400 fans who made the trek to Casey Basketball Stadium left with what will likely become an “I was there when …” moment they can tell their kids and grandkids about one day.
From the first tip, It took Anthony all of 13 seconds to show he meant business, as he stepped straight into a three on the very first play of the game to get things rolling.
“Making your first shot always feels good, but if you don’t make the first shot, you can make the second shot, don’t make the second, make the third,” he told CODE Sports.
“You’ve got to have some irrational confidence.”
Prior to Saturday night, the New York native had promised he would be “balls to the wall” in his first appearance for the club.
So, five minutes after that opening bucket, Anthony trotted to the bench barely able to keep the smile off his face, having accounted for eight of the first 11 United points, while assisting on the other three, former Orlando Magic teammate Joe Ingles finished off a neat Anthony pass with a silky triple.
Balls to the wall, indeed, but Anthony insists it’s only the beginning — even if he’s steadfast in not getting ahead of himself on the back of one prolific outing.
“Look, if I’m going to step out on the court I want to put my best foot forward every time,” Anthony said.
“Sometimes, the basketball gods are on your side.
“They were on my side tonight but I also put a lot of work in for this moment.
“It was a game where I felt like I was able to step into a lot of good shots that just happened to fall.
“It was a good start — but it might not be like that every game.”
Originally published as Former NBA man Cole Anthony puts NBL on notice with stunning Melbourne United debut