Where does the argument between Melo, Nuggets over No. 15 come from?

Retired NBA star Carmelo "Melo" Anthony criticized the Denver Nuggets, the first team he played for in the league, for giving his No. 15 jersey to Nikola Jokic. Jokic soon responded to his remarks to defend the team.

"It was a petty maneuver. It wasn't like, 'Oh, we've got numbers to choose from.' It was like, 'here, take this one, you got 15,'" Anthony said during the latest episode of his 7PM in Brooklyn podcast. "And y'all put Jokic in the middle of that. … He could've been trying to pay homage, I don't know... But what I believe, is that they gave him No. 15 to try to erase what I did."

When asked about Anthony's remarks later, Jokic told reporters: "I think I've been wearing 15 my whole life."

This argument seemed to have come out of nowhere because Anthony retired in May 2022, 11 years after he had been traded by the Nuggets to the New York Knicks - a move he requested. That transaction happened in February 2011, three years before Jokic was drafted by the Nuggets and four years before he actually put on the No. 15 jersey to play for the team in the NBA. Moreover, before Jokic, Anthony Randolph also wore that number in Denver for two seasons between 2012 and 2014.

It's logical to assume that Anthony is upset because the Nuggets are unlikely to retire No. 15 for him. After all, Jokic is already the greatest player in franchise history as a two-time NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) and the NBA Finals MVP who led the team to win their first Larry O'Brien Trophy.

Of course, the Nuggets didn't have to give the number to Jokic in the first place. Nonetheless, even if they hadn't done so and had kept No. 15 untouched since Melo's departure, does the team necessarily have to retire it for him?

First, the Nuggets have retired the following numbers for these people: No. 8 for Alex English, No. 6 for Bill Russell, No. 12 for Fat Lever, No. 33 for David Thompson, No. 40 for Byron Beck, No. 44 for Dan Issel, No. 55 for Dikembe Mutombo, and No. 432 for coach Doug Moe.

Of the above people, English is the Nuggets' all-time leaders in points per game, games played, field goals (FGs) made and a series of other stats. Bill Russell was the 11-time NBA champion respected by the whole NBA. Lever was the team's all-time steals leader. In the Nuggets' final season in the ABA (1975-76), they reached the ABA Finals under the leadership of Thompson and Issel. Mutombo is one of the greatest defenders in NBA history. Moe was the longest-serving head coach in team history. Beck was one of six players who participated in all nine seasons (1967–1976) of the original ABA.

By contrast, Anthony has averaged 24.8 points, 6.3 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game in a bit less than eight seasons for the Nuggets. He was selected into the All-Star game four times, the All-NBA Second Team once, the Third Team three times during that period of time. He helped the team advance to the Western Conference once in 2009, but it was not unique, not to mention that Chauncy Billups was seen as the real game-changer for the team that season.

Furthermore, Anthony and the Nuggets have not been on their best terms since he requested the team to trade him in 2011. According to ESPN back then, he asked to be sent to the Knicks specifically. It was a blockbuster deal that involved another eight players, three draft picks and cash. Some argued that Anthony started the atmosphere of star players enlisting trade destinations their teams.

There may be no simple right or wrong in Anthony's act, but the Nuggets have been clearly resentful of him. Back in October 2020, they posted a picture of five players on X, which was known as Twitter back then, and asked "Who is your favorite Nugget of all time?" The five players were Jokic, Mutombo, English, Billups and Nick Van Exel, who played only four seasons in the team between 1998 and 2002 without appearing in the playoffs.

Anthony was nowhere to be found in that picture.

The sad part about the argument between Anthony and the Nuggets is that, if the team won't retire No. 15 for him, he may have no retired number on any NBA team. He has played for a total of six NBA teams during his 19-season-long career, eight in the Nuggets and seven in the Knicks. His record at the Knicks began to look very disappointing from his third year, not to mention that those who had their numbers retired by the Knicks have much more glorious and legendary careers than Anthony.