The Team Lost, He Didn't

Carmelo Anthony silently gazed at Goodwin, who was tightly surrounded by his teammates, his eyes filled with endless memories and emotion.

Time seemed to flow back to the days of their youth.

Back then, Carmelo Anthony had been the heaven-blessed prodigy everyone admired!

In those days, he had been high-spirited and brimming with ambition, convinced that his talent was unmatched.

He remembered clearly that, in every respect, he had been far superior to Goodwin.

Even in the NCAA finals, though he had ultimately lost to Goodwin, he had always believed it was nothing more than a stroke of bad luck.

Later, when they entered the NBA together—the stage they had both dreamed of—fate took them down entirely different paths.

With his outstanding performance, Carmelo Anthony had been selected third overall and become the center of attention, while Goodwin had fallen somewhat short, not being picked until the tenth selection of the second round.

Even so, Carmelo Anthony still believed there was a world of difference between himself and Goodwin.

After all, he had firmly secured a starting spot in his very first season and easily averaged more than 20 points per game.

Goodwin, by contrast, had been nothing more than an inconspicuous reserve at the time.

Yet the world was unpredictable. As the second season approached, the situation suddenly took a dramatic turn.

Goodwin had burst forth like a dazzling new star, instantly shining with brilliant light.

He began rewriting his personal records again and again, while honors came flooding in—Player of the Week, Player of the Month, and more were practically effortless for him.

Even more astonishingly, Goodwin had posted a jaw-dropping stat line during the regular season: 30.6 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 2.3 steals, and 2 blocks per game, while shooting an incredible 51.9% from the field