Legacy means leverage, and last night, Carmelo Anthony’s son turned it into currency. At a packed Summit practice, Kiyan Anthony walked up, dropped his father’s name, and closed a deal: “I’m going to introduce you to him…You just gotta give me the ball.” In that split-second exchange, the 18-year-old revealed that legacy isn’t so much inherited as it’s negotiated.

On April 4, 2025, at the Jordan Brand Classic in Washington, D.C., Kiyan scored 26 points and earned MVP honors. The 18-year-old lives and breathes basketball. And he knows it better than anyone that basketball is a team game.  At the April 12 Nike Hoop Summit in Portland, Kiyan struck a playful deal with a Team World teammate. The clip shows a practice session where one of the players is admiring Melo as Kiyan approaches him. The son beams as he introduces his NBA Hall of Famer father, Carmelo Anthony, to an awestruck teammate. 

“That’s my dad, bro,” Kiyan is seen saying in the clip. “I know, bro, it’s weird because I’ve never seen an NBA player this close,” the other player said. As the other player expresses awe at seeing a former NBA player up close, Kiyan happily offers to introduce him to Melo. But that wasn’t without a catch. “I’m going to introduce you to him. I got you. You just gotta give me the ball though. You gotta pass it to me,” Kiyan added. He jokingly asked that the teammate pass the ball to him during games, and the player agreed. Beyond the joke, the quid pro quo reveals how swiftly Kiyan’s name—and his father’s—builds camaraderie.

He also recently took help from a $80.5 billion-valued brand, DoorDash, to prepare a surprise for La La Anthony. Mother’s Day is right around the corner, and the 18-year-old already has big plans to honor and celebrate the day with his mother. He prepared a fresh bouquet and a rose-covered bag full of La La’s favorite things with her name on it. Chocolate candies like Snickers and Kit Kat, as well as some products from Sephora, were stuffed inside.

When La La pressed for inspiration, he deadpanned, ‘DoorDash,’ instead of ‘because I love you,’ catching her off guard. Apart from this special surprise for his mother, Kiyan also had praises for his dad.

Kiyan Anthony gushes over Carmelo Anthony 

The former Long Island Lutheran star made headlines when he announced his decision to join his father’s alma mater. Both La La and Melo ensured that their 18-year-old wasn’t under pressure to make the decision. As the father and son sat down for a conversation with Justsmile Magazine, the two opened up about heartwarming details about each other.

Kiyan, who earlier snubbed his father from his GOAT list, shared how much he appreciates him. “It’s crazy. Even though that’s my pops, that’s still one of my favorite players,” he said. The 10x NBA All-Star also shared how fond he is when his son asks him about his career, legacy, and how he made it all possible. With him having won the NCAA championship with Syracuse, the expectations are indeed high on the young hooper. 

“I love when he comes to me like, ‘Dad, what happened when you were 18?’ That’s how I was when I was growing up, talking to my uncles and cousins,” the New York Knicks legend said. It was a wholesome exchange between the two. That shared curiosity has roots in rhyme and reason. In April 2003, Carmelo led Syracuse to its first—and only—NCAA championship, averaging 22.2 points per game and earning Most Outstanding Player honors in New Orleans. Two decades earlier, on April 11, 2002, he dropped 27 points at the Jordan Brand Classic in Washington, D.C., a performance now echoed by Kiyan’s own 26-point MVP outing at the same tournament and venue in April 2025.

For this year’s edition, Melo brought the tournament back to its original city for the fans as his son put on an electric performance. It seems now, Melo might have finally made it to Kiyan’s GOAT list!