Carmelo Anthony #00 of the Portland Trail Blazers
Carmelo Anthony #00 of the Portland Trail Blazers

Carmelo Anthony reached that point in his NBA career where it appeared all was lost.

Anthony has copped almost every individual award any player may covet. But the ultimate prize is an NBA title.

After agreeing to a one-year deal to join the Lakers, it may be the best chance he has at winning an NBA ring.

Hence, it comes as no surprise that the 37-year-old player has a new perspective compared to those dark years when he almost quit with his chips down.

“The only thing I don’t have is a championship,” Anthony said to Yahoo Sports. “I’ve won at every level. [If I signed somewhere else], I had to really come to grips and say, ‘If I walk away [from the game without a title], I’m cool.’ Now that I'm with the Lakers, it's a must-have. There's no question about it. We gotta get it. It’s go time now. I gotta think about it every second of the day.”

The third overall pick of the 2003 NBA Draft could have gotten the same pitch from other teams. But the chance to tandem with LeBron James and a high-powered roster was too hard to pass up.

And most of all, it puts him in a good position to win his first NBA title.

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Photo: Getty Images | Christian Petersen

However, his addition did not come without controversy. Some question how the aging roster of the Lakers can last the coming NBA season.

Anthony gave his take on the proverbial jabs hurled their way.

“I like when people talk about the age. It gives a better story. I think it gives a better story. I think people forget, at the end of the day, it’s about basketball. You got to know how to play basketball. You got to have that experience. I think that’s what we bring at this point and time. Our talent, our skill, but also our experience,” Anthony said in a report by ESPN.