Throughout Carmelo Anthony’s Hall of Fame-caliber career in the NBA, he played with and against some of the greatest players of all time, especially when it came to one-on-one situations, as he had some epic battles with Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant.
Although Bryant is widely considered one of the best one-on-one players in league history, potentially up there with Chicago Bulls icon Michael Jordan, some other stars of the past don’t get the credit they deserve for being so good in those situations on the basketball floor.
On the 7 PM in Brooklyn podcast, Anthony spoke with New York Knicks star forward Julius Randle and was asked who is the most underrated one-on-one player he ever went up against.
He did not hesitate to give his choice.
“Joe Johnson,” Anthony said. “He got his name ‘Iso Joe,’ and we still don’t give him credit for it.”
Melo says the most underrated 1-on-1 player of his era was “Iso Joe” Johnson pic.twitter.com/crv0utaTxp
— 7PM in Brooklyn (@7PMinBrooklyn) June 20, 2024
At one point during his career, Johnson was considered one of the best players in the league, as he was the undisputed leader of a talented Atlanta Hawks squad and was named an All-Star seven times in the NBA.
Despite having a lot of success with the Hawks, Johnson, like Anthony, was never able to win an NBA title during his career.
Along with making an impact in Atlanta, Johnson played for the Boston Celtics, Phoenix Suns, Brooklyn Nets, Miami Heat, Utah Jazz and Houston Rockets before taking his talent to Ice Cube’s BIG3 League and becoming a three-time BIG3 MVP and winning a title there in 2019.
