Anthony Davis Receives Warning From Carmelo Anthony

“It’s sad to say, but when you go through it, you see it happening,” Anthony said. “You see it snowballing slowly, and it's a couple of guys that [are] in the league that I see starting to happen to.”

Anthony then addressed how the end of a career can place pressure on long-standing reputations.

“There’s no level of respect when it’s time for you to go,” Anthony said. “Legacy doesn’t mean [expletive] in a sense. Because when they want you out, they don’t think about legacy.”

More concerning for a few NBA greats still active and playing these days, Anthony pointed to what he sees happening to three of them: Anthony Davis, Russell Westbrook and DeMar DeRozan, all of whom are approaching the final stretch of their careers.

“It’s happening to Russ,” Anthony said. “It’s about to happen to DeMar DeRozan. It’s about to happen to AD — the next trade that AD has — it’s going downhill from here. This is what's about to happen.

“It's unfortunate that that trend, the way that our legends of the game get treated — it's [expletive] up.”

Ultimately, Anthony compared his own decision-making late in his career — when he forced his way out of New York and left the Knicks — noting why some veterans choose not to take end-of-roster roles.

“This is why people call me selfish when I made [my decision]. I'm not going back to the Knicks and be the 15th, 14th man on the roster. You know why?” Anthony said. “Because if [expletive] go left, you know who they pointing to? And that’s the easiest spot that we can get rid of and bring somebody else in.”

The Clippers beat the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday, improving to 6-16 on the season.