Is Carmelo Anthony victim of smear campaign by NBA execs?

Carmelo Anthony, despite barely playing at all last season, continues to be on the forefront of NBA talk this offseason, with speculation running rampant about exactly why he remains without a job.

During a discussion about Anthony’s ongoing purgatory on ESPN’s “First Take” on Thursday, Stephen A. Smith and Max Kellerman intimated that the onetime superstar may be the victim of a behind-the-scenes smear job.

“I’m hearing that there’s chitter-chatter going on behind Melo’s back,” Smith said, as transcribed by Bleacher Report. “I don’t know from who, but it’s not players. It’s coaches, it’s GMs. And a lot of people don’t realize that sometimes these coaches and GMs have the same reps as one another. So you say, one person could say something, and it can circulate because that clique is intact and they don’t even know whether it’s true or not. They’re just going on word of mouth.”

Kellerman then said, “It doesn’t seem like Carmelo deserves to have his reputation smeared behind the scenes. If that’s what’s keeping him out of the league it doesn’t appear to me to be fair.”

Smith responded to that suggestion by simply saying, “Right.”

A perception has developed around Anthony’s continued unemployment that suggests LeBron James should be able to get his longtime pal a spot on a roster, perhaps even with the Los Angeles Lakers. Smith touched upon that notion during Thursday’s program.