7PM In Brooklyn: “NBA Superteams, Zion Williamson, Stephen A, & More”

Carmelo Anthony and The Kid Mero speak on Zion Williamson critics, why the Clippers are the only NBA superteam, and Shohei Ohtani’s $700M contract on their “7PM in Brooklyn” podcast.

Today, we share this week’s episode of “7PM in Brooklyn”, a Wave Sports + Entertainment Original, hosted by NBA legend, Carmelo Anthony, and multi-talented comedian and host, The Kid Mero.

In the episode, the duo sit down to discuss how the current era of three-star superteams is over and why the Clippers may be the only squad to fit that billing.

Later on, the guys open up about the latest controversy surrounding Zion Williamson’s fitness and the immense pressure the young superstar has had to face since entering the league.

Lastly, Melo and Mero share their thoughts on Shohei Ohtani’s record-breaking $700M contract, and Stephen A. Smith’s viral “after dark” clips.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

• 7:04 – MELO REACT TO SHOHEI OHTANI’S RECORD-BREAKING $700 MILLION CONTRACT WITH THE DODGERS

“The Dodgers’ operations backbone is built off of cable money…This is cable wars. This is streaming wars… He’s worth it…I say you [are] getting the top two superstars in MLB at one time. You [are] getting the top pitcher and you [are] getting the top hitter. The hitter got $350 [million], and the pitcher is getting $350 [million]. I ain’t mad at it. Shoutout to Shohei, man. Wine and dinner is on you, champ. Let’s talk, Shohei!”

• 15:55 – MELO AND MERO ON THE CURRENT ERA OF NBA SUPERTEAMS AND WHY THE CLIPPERS ARE THE ONLY TEAM THAT WOULD CLASSIFY AS ONE

Mero: “At one point, it was all about superteams…It used to be three guys and now it’s starting to seem like [teams] are more duo-oriented. You got Jokic and Jamal Murray, KD and Book, Julius and Brunson, PG and Kawhi. Before, it felt like you needed three dudes, now you need two and like a solid supporting cast. If I’m the GM I don’t even know how I’m doing this now…is that era over?”

Melo: “…To me, [Team] USA was a superteam… [The] ‘04 Lakers [were] a superteam. Even though they didn’t pan out, they [were] a superteam on paper…Anything more than two or three is a superteam…there only is one superteam in the NBA and that’s the Clippers because of what they have…you got four of the best players of all time in NBA history on one team… There are no duos – PG [Paul George], Kawhi [Leonard]; Russ[ell Westbrook], and James [Harden]… So, that’s the only superteam, I think.”

• 31:46 – CARMELO ON WHY A PRIME VERSION OF HIMSELF WOULD HAVE BEEN A GREAT FIT WITH THE CURRENT KNICKS ROSTER

Melo: “Me with this [current Knicks] team? That would have been a special team… You have presence in the paint with the best shot blocker in the game arguably, you have a force in Julius [Randle],…You put him as the next guy, next to the guy it can be special. But when you have the pressure of doing that every night… it’s very hard…They have a really good team, they need that white hat.”

Mero: “…It’s like the Jets, and I’m not even a Jets fan! The defense is crazy, the offense is all there, all you needed was that quarterback!…Same thing with the Knicks!”

• 51:26 – CARMELO LOOKS BACK ON HIS TIME WITH THE LAKERS AND HOW OFF COURT CHEMISTRY DOESN’T ALWAYS GUARANTEE COHESION ON THE COURT

“The chemistry that you have to have off the court, says a lot about what happens on the court. So we can be the best off the court — we can have the best time off the court. On the court, we just won’t– we can’t figure this shit out. For example, [when] I was on the Lakers we had the best chemistry off [the court] and that was considered a superteam. The best, the best times off the floor. We get on the court, sometimes we couldn’t figure it out… is it the situation? Is it the system? What is it? We always [were] trying to search for what was the fix. And we could never find out what was the fix…You have to really find the fix on the court because what you do off the court, yes, it’s supposed to enhance what you do on the court, but a lot of times it [doesn’t]. But the teams that do both, you can see it.”

• 59:48 – MELO ON THE PRESSURE PUT ON ZION WILLIAMSON AND THE ONGOING COMMENTS ABOUT HIS SIZE

Mero: “The Pelicans are not really happy with Zion and his conditioning and the quote coming from the team is ‘he don’t listen’…my question is do you feel like Zion is maybe missing an opportunity to lock in and become that generational type of player?”

Melo: “I think, from the beginning, there was so much put on Zion, like thrown at him. You have to be the next — you are the logo, you are the next guy. We haven’t seen [anything] like this since ‘03. So because of that…this kid is [coming in at] 18 — this kid still wants to eat McDonald’s, this kid still wants to eat Chick-fil-A, this kid still wants to drink iced tea, man he’s from South Carolina… this is what they do — they eat… The fans want him to be Zion Williamson, the greatest thing since Wilt Chamberlain…but that’s not who he wants to be yet. So now he’s dealing with the mental aspect of I just want to be 19, but it’s so much pressure…So you start battling that and now injuries come…so now it’s [that] he’s too heavy, he’s this, he’s that…He needs to be disciplined… You [are] not gonna have that longevity that we are talking about if you don’t have that discipline…my message to Zion is discipline, do what you gotta do and embrace the white hat.”

• 1:14:11 – REACTING TO STEPHEN A SMITH’S WEIRD AFTER DARK CLIPS

Mero: “Of all the people that I would think to put the freaky label on, it is not our beloved Stephen A. Smith but here we are…[in reaction to Stephen A.’s clip] that was felony [level] horny right there.”

Melo: “Stephen A., you buggin’ man!…He is R&B After Dark on Sirius! C’mon Stephen A!”