QUEZON CITY – American basketball great Carmelo Anthony is formally named as the third Global Ambassador of the 2023 FIBA World Cup.
In front of the accredited media members, Anthony was officially announced as the latest ambassador in the 2023 FIBA Global Ambassador Presentation this Friday (PHT) within the Smart Araneta Coliseum, Philippines.
“I’ve been part of FIBA basketball since 2000s and to come back full circle now and be the ambassador for the World Cup, it’s definitely an honor, a blessing,” Anthony said. “It’s been a long time coming. But for me it’s just about being able to build nations together, bring people together through one common thing which is basketball.”
Anthony, who will join both Spanish hoops legend Pau Gasol and Argentinian icon Luis Scola in the tournament’s global ambassadorial role, landed in the country’s capital in Manila yesterday. His tour around the city’s historic spots in Luneta Park and Intramuros went viral amongst Pinoy basketball enthusiasts in the social media landscape.
With career averages of 22.5 points, 6.2 boards and 2.7 assists in 1,260 total games played across six different NBA teams, Anthony is one of the most prominent basketball players in the world due to his masterful offensive wits and elite scoring prowess.
A 10-time All-Star and a member of the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team, Anthony was also a mainstay and one of the best performers on the United States basketball team on the international stage, helping his nation to clinch three gold medals in 2008, 2012 and 2016 Olympics. He was also a part of the program’s bronze medal finishes in both the 2004 Olympics and the 2006 FIBA World Championship.
Anthony stands as a notable key free agent that remains unsigned in the NBA market this season. He previously played the last 2021-22 campaign with the Los Angeles Lakers.
His lucrative résumé in both his professional and national team career, added by his magical one-year NCAA title run with the Syracuse Orangemen in 2002-2003, assures him an absolute enshrinement in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in the near future.
The Philippines will host the 2023 FIBA World Cup with Japan and Indonesia from Aug. 25 to Sept. 10. This marks the first time that the hosting rights of a FIBA tournament will be grabbed by multiple nations.
