Kori Ellis
12-03-2004, 02:53 AM
Associated Press
DENVER -- A homemade DVD shows Denver Nuggets star Carmelo Anthony with a man who warns that people who tip police about drug deals "get a hole in their head."
The remark was apparently made in a conversation on a street in Baltimore, where Anthony grew up. In excerpts broadcast on television stations in Denver and Baltimore Thursday, Anthony does not appear to be participating in that part of the discussion.
Anthony's agent, Calvin Andrews, said Anthony "did not knowingly participate in the production of this DVD and does not approve of its message or content."
In a written statement, Andrews said Anthony visited with people from his old neighborhood in Baltimore last summer.
"Carmelo has never denied the fact that he comes from a tough neighborhood. He does not condone some of the things that happen there and has worked very hard to rise above that difficult environment," Andrews said.
The DVD was shown just hours before the Nuggets were to play the Cleveland Cavaliers in Anthony's highly anticipated matchup with LeBron James.
Anthony did not meet with reporters before the game.
The DVD is the latest in a series of off-the-court distractions for the Nuggets star.
He got into a bar fight in New York in September, and police arrested two men on extortion charges for allegedly trying to sell him a videotape of the fight for $3 million.
Airport inspectors found marijuana in Anthony's backpack in October, but prosecutors dropped a drug charge after a friend said the marijuana was his and Anthony didn't know about it. The friend, James Cunningham of St. Louis, now faces a charge of possessing less than an ounce of marijuana.
Nuggets coach Jeff Bzdelik said he knew nothing about the video but said distractions like this can hurt the team.
"Let's put it this way: This is their job," Bzdelik said. "I'm speaking generally now. In order to perform their job well, you have to have a concentrated effort, 24-7, on your job. When something affects one player, it can trickle down and I think that's just a general statement for all of us, whether it be a coach, an assistant coach, or a player."
The DVD also shows a laughing Anthony saying his Olympic bronze medal "is in a lake somewhere," KMGH-TV in Denver reported, but it wasn't clear whether he was joking. :flipoff Anthony was unhappy with his playing time at the Athens Games, and U.S. coach Larry Brown called him lazy.
DENVER -- A homemade DVD shows Denver Nuggets star Carmelo Anthony with a man who warns that people who tip police about drug deals "get a hole in their head."
The remark was apparently made in a conversation on a street in Baltimore, where Anthony grew up. In excerpts broadcast on television stations in Denver and Baltimore Thursday, Anthony does not appear to be participating in that part of the discussion.
Anthony's agent, Calvin Andrews, said Anthony "did not knowingly participate in the production of this DVD and does not approve of its message or content."
In a written statement, Andrews said Anthony visited with people from his old neighborhood in Baltimore last summer.
"Carmelo has never denied the fact that he comes from a tough neighborhood. He does not condone some of the things that happen there and has worked very hard to rise above that difficult environment," Andrews said.
The DVD was shown just hours before the Nuggets were to play the Cleveland Cavaliers in Anthony's highly anticipated matchup with LeBron James.
Anthony did not meet with reporters before the game.
The DVD is the latest in a series of off-the-court distractions for the Nuggets star.
He got into a bar fight in New York in September, and police arrested two men on extortion charges for allegedly trying to sell him a videotape of the fight for $3 million.
Airport inspectors found marijuana in Anthony's backpack in October, but prosecutors dropped a drug charge after a friend said the marijuana was his and Anthony didn't know about it. The friend, James Cunningham of St. Louis, now faces a charge of possessing less than an ounce of marijuana.
Nuggets coach Jeff Bzdelik said he knew nothing about the video but said distractions like this can hurt the team.
"Let's put it this way: This is their job," Bzdelik said. "I'm speaking generally now. In order to perform their job well, you have to have a concentrated effort, 24-7, on your job. When something affects one player, it can trickle down and I think that's just a general statement for all of us, whether it be a coach, an assistant coach, or a player."
The DVD also shows a laughing Anthony saying his Olympic bronze medal "is in a lake somewhere," KMGH-TV in Denver reported, but it wasn't clear whether he was joking. :flipoff Anthony was unhappy with his playing time at the Athens Games, and U.S. coach Larry Brown called him lazy.