Say what you want, but at this point one has to feel bad for Carmelo Anthony.

And that may sound odd considering that he makes millions of dollars playing basketball for a living. But I just can’t help from feeling bad for him.

Anthony is going to be forever remembered for being drafted in the same class as LeBron James and Dwyane Wade.

Wade has a championship and James is the face of the league. Anthony, though, has been under scrutiny for things such as marijuana possession in 2004 and the infamous Stop Snitchin’ video. Then of course there was the mini brawl at the Garden in 2006.

Most recently, Anthony was pulled over under the suspicion of driving under the influence in April of 2008.

You might say, ‘Well he obviously brings this trouble onto himself.’

Hey, we’re all human. People make certain mistakes and learn from them. It looked like Anthony had begun that transition and it started with a little redemption through the ‘Redeem Team’ in Beijing.

Teaming with the best players this country had to offer, Anthony – along with Wade and James – won gold in the past Summer Olympics. Dominating the competition, Anthony scored 11 points in the United States’ 118-107 victory over Spain.

His biggest basketball accomplishment to date, Anthony was beginning to rid himself of the perception that he is a trouble maker.

With the midseason acquisition of Chauncey Billups, the Denver Nuggets have its best start in franchise history when they defeated the Indiana Pacers on Monday night.

At 24-12 as of Tuesday afternoon, the Nuggets are currently the third seed in the tough Western Conference.

And it was in the game against the Pacers that Anthony caught the worst break of the year – a fracture in his right hand. It has been announced that he will miss at least three weeks.

I’m no doctor, but the fact that Anthony couldn’t tie his shoes after the game isn’t a good sign.

So now Anthony, and the Nuggets, are forced to sit and wait. They will try to stay afloat and be positive about this setback.

While James and Wade jockey for position in the Eastern Conference, Anthony will be jockeying for position on the bench or in the training room.

And I, for one, feel bad for him.

Anthony has been in their shadow since he broke into the league. Confronted in years past with questions about Wade’s and James’ success, Anthony would let it be known it doesn’t bother him. But as a competitor, you can’t help but wonder if he is lying.

The past five months, though, Anthony began making the move back into the forefront. Quietly going about his business in the Western Conference, Anthony has continued his trend of being one of the league’s elite players.

Now? He can get the other elite players in the league to sign his cast.

Just think of this very likely scenario:

The Nuggets struggle without Anthony. They begin to lose their grasp on the third seed and slide to about the seventh seed in the weeks Anthony misses. Considering how competitive the West is, any string of bad games makes this possible. Anthony returns, but now the team is used to playing without him and it takes a few games for him to work his way into the rotation. Remember, this is a broken bone in his shooting hand.

Meanwhile, James and the Cavaliers continue to run through the East and Wade continues his MVP-like season. Both teams cruise into the playoffs.

The Nuggets make the playoffs, as well. The only thing is that they are not the seventh seed and have to go on the road to win their opening round playoff series in the difficult West.

They fall in six games and Anthony is out of the playoffs in the first round again. Wade and James? They both get out of the first round and James leads his team to the Eastern Conference Finals. Wade and James will have carried their teams through the regular season and the postseason.

Anthony will be blamed for not being able to win the big games. Wade and James will receive high-praise.

But guess what? He isn’t Wade or James. They’re all friends off the court and rivals on the court. They will always be grouped together and put under the microscope, in some cases, together. And that will be unfair. I just hope some of the breaks start going his way.

Photo Credit: ICON Sports Media