When Carmelo Anthony was traded from the Denver Nuggets to the New York Knicks in February 2011, the move was celebrated as a triumphant homecoming for the Brooklyn-born superstar. But for his then-wife, MTV star and actress La La Anthony, the high-stakes relocation marked the beginning of an overwhelming chapter under the unforgiving New York media microscope. Once touted as the NBA’s It couple, Melo and La La divorced in 2021, during the Portland leg of Anthony’s career.
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A year after the divorce, Melo’s ex-wife was on the Call Her Daddy podcast, reflecting on the breakdown of their marriage. The interview has resurfaced at an interesting time, just as TMZ appears to have caught La La spending time with a new mystery man.
When Cooper referenced a 2011 New York Times profile that famously dubbed La La “The First Lady of the N.B.A.” in its headline, she laughed off the title with self-deprecating humor. “Well, we see how that turned out, guys. They probably won’t even let me in games anymore,” La La joked. “So there goes your first lady, guys. Goodbye.”
Turning serious, Cooper asked if the constant public scrutiny made the early years of Melo’s career difficult to navigate. She went on to reveal that the decade-old piece didn’t capture that the Big Apple’s relentless spotlight was only one piece of a complex puzzle that led to the end of her marriage.
“Yeah, that was hard for us. That was hard for us,” La La admitted. “I feel like when we moved to New York, ’cause we came from Denver at the time. When we moved to New York, I’m from New York, so being back in New York is nothing new, but when we lived here under all of that, that’s when things became complicated. I think that was kind of the start. Now that I look back, that was kind of the start of the demise of the marriage.”
When Cooper shared her own experience dating a New York athlete, noting the immense pressure of the media, press, and public scrutiny, La La agreed, clarifying that the city wasn’t the sole culprit.
“It is really, really hard. That’s not the only reason things didn’t work out, but things got tough with New York,” La La explained, but didn’t elaborate on what it was. “And like you were saying, just constantly being under the spotlight, people watching every little thing. And then, you know, being in New York, I don’t know, like Denver was so laid-back. New York, it’s like I got to get on my grind. Then I started really like going into overdrive with my career and wanting things to go that way. So, it’s like he’s doing his thing, I’m doing mine. It just…”
The 2011 New York Times article referenced by Alex Cooper narrated a vastly different era for the couple. Following Carmelo Anthony’s blockbuster trade to the Knicks, the Anthonys emerged as a dominant pop-culture pairing, drawing comparisons to David and Victoria Beckham.
Beyond their separate careers, the couple launched Krossover Productions, co-producing documentary films like Tyson (not the recent Netflix one) alongside La La’s VH1 reality series, La La’s Full Court Life.
At the time, La La expressed a desire to become a powerhouse couple like Will and Jada Pinkett Smith, refusing to be defined solely as a “basketball wife” as she built her own entertainment repertoire. However, balancing her rising acting career, which later included starring roles in popular shows such as Power and BMF, with Melo’s superstardom in the New York tabloids eventually pulled them apart.
They were engaged in 2004 and married in 2010. They officially divorced in 2021, citing irreconcilable differences, but remained a united front for their son, Kiyan.
Years after the split, La La’s perspective on love and relationships continues to evolve. Speaking recently on The Crew Has It podcast with her former Power co-stars Michael Rainey Jr. and Gianni Paolo, the actress revealed that dating a celebrity is a lot easier, though she remains open to partners outside the industry.
“If you date somebody in the industry, you feel like, okay, they at least know my lifestyle, how I have to work. I gotta be on set at two, three in the morning. I’m gonna be on set for 16 hours,” La La shared. While she feels someone outside showbiz wouldn’t understand, she maintained, “It’s about the vibe.”
TMZ recently captured La La spending time with a mystery man at a New York bar. Whether it’s the beginning of something new remains to be seen, but her comments about dating suggest she’s keeping an open mind.