A quick update on Carmelo Anthony
Since we posted Dave’s article on Carmelo Anthony, Stephen Curry, and Pistol Pete, Melo has continued to miss a very large amount of shots at an alarming rate. At the moment, Anthony has taken over 30 field goal attempts (FGA) per 48 minutes played during this year’s playoffs. This feat has only been accomplished 14 times, and Melo’s performance is the second worst in terms of effective field goal percentage (eFG%):
| Player | Season | FGA | PTS | eFG% | TS% | PPS |
| Michael Jordan | 1989-90 | 30.3 | 41.8 | 53.3% | 59.2% | 1.38 |
| Dan Issel | 1983-84 | 32.0 | 43.0 | 51.5% | 57.5% | 1.34 |
| Michael Jordan | 1991-92 | 30.3 | 39.6 | 51.4% | 57.1% | 1.31 |
| Michael Jordan | 1985-86 | 33.8 | 46.6 | 51.1% | 58.4% | 1.38 |
| Michael Jordan | 1992-93 | 32.4 | 40.8 | 50.2% | 55.3% | 1.26 |
| Kobe Bryant | 2011-12 | 30.4 | 36.3 | 46.7% | 52.5% | 1.20 |
| Dominique Wilkins | 1987-88 | 30.4 | 38.0 | 46.3% | 52.7% | 1.25 |
| Walter Davis | 1981-82 | 32.2 | 35.2 | 45.3% | 50.2% | 1.09 |
| Dominique Wilkins | 1992-93 | 31.9 | 38.2 | 44.7% | 51.0% | 1.20 |
| Michael Jordan | 1986-87 | 31.5 | 40.1 | 42.9% | 52.9% | 1.27 |
| Allen Iverson | 2000-01 | 31.2 | 34.2 | 42.5% | 48.0% | 1.09 |
| Tracy McGrady | 2000-01 | 33.2 | 36.4 | 42.3% | 48.3% | 1.10 |
| Carmelo Anthony | 2012-13 | 30.6 | 33.7 | 42.1% | 48.8% | 1.10 |
| Darrell Griffith | 1986-87 | 30.0 | 31.4 | 41.5% | 46.3% | 1.05 |
Thanks to his excellent free-throw shooting, Anthony fares a bit better if we rank these performances by True Shooting percentage (TS%; 11/14) or by Points per Shot (PPS; 10/14). Still, what we are seeing from Anthony is something that doesn’t happen very often. The most similar performances would be Tracy McGrady and Allen Iverson during the 2000-01 playoffs, and it should be noted that those two players — particularly McGrady — offered more than just scoring. But regardless of how you look at the numbers, it’s clear that Carmelo Anthony’s performance ranks in the bottom five of this grouping.
On another note, these figures do support the notion that Michael Jordan was an excellent scorer. Jordan shows up on this list five times, more than any other player. He posted the 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th-highest numbers in terms of points; 1st, 3rd, 4th, and 5th, in terms of eFG%; and 1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th, and 6th in terms of both TS% and PPS. Dan Issel in 1983-84 is the only player in this category with remotely similar numbers.
– Devin