Carmelo Anthony Gives His Own NBA Comparison For Caitlin Clark (Spoiler: It's Not Payton Pritchard)

When Caitlin Clark appeared as a guest analyst for “NBA on NBC” earlier this month, fans couldn’t help but notice her reaction to a comment from Reggie Miller. Asked to identify an NBA player that reminds him of the Indiana Fever superstar, Miller decided to go with Payton Pritchard, supposedly because of his handles and clutch gene.

Carmelo Anthony, an NBC regular just like Miller, was standing right there as Clark had a momentary look of disappointment on her face. On Monday’s episode of his “7PM in Brooklyn” podcast, Melo shared his inner thoughts during that moment.

“I’m hearing it loud as s*** in my ear, and when he said Payton Pritchard, it just caught me off,” the Basketball Hall of Famer admitted. “He wasn’t completely trippin’, but he was trippin’.”

Melo then offered his own NBA comparison for CC. “She got a little Steph and Haliburton. And Luka, she plays a little like him. She knows about angles, and she manipulates you on offense.”

Many hoops fans were expecting Miller to go with the first name that Melo mentioned here. For quite some time, Clark has drawn parallels to Steph Curry on and off the court. Like the four-time NBA champion, Clark has become an extremely marketable figure with her impeccable shooting from beyond the arc, as well as the midrange.

Luka Doncic is an interesting choice, but it makes sense as well, given Clark’s high basketball IQ and the 4D game of chess that she plays on the court. As for Tyrese Haliburton (who happens to be a close friend of Clark), Melo pointed out that both Indiana darlings confound opposing defenders with their versatility on the perimeter. “You don’t know where she gonna shoot that s***,” Melo said.

When Melo likened Clark’s passing skills to Haliburton’s propensity for impressive assists, “7PM” guest DeMarcus Cousins seized the opportunity to refute Miller. “Payton Pritchard isn’t even passing!” Cousins said. “That’s why I’m like, hell nah, bro.”

While Cousins’ claim isn’t accurate, as Pritchard is averaging a career-high 5.3 assists per game this season, he does have an NBA title on his resume. This is something that Doncic and Haliburton don’t have at the moment, and it’s a benchmark worth pursuing for Clark as she stays focused on winning a WNBA championship.

If CC gets around to winning her first ring, the feat of finally reaching the mountaintop will make for a happy comparison with Pritchard.