“It’s not easy at all”: Carmelo Anthony’s son Kiyan Anthony opens up on balancing school and basketball

Until Kiyan Anthony makes it to the big league, he will have to harmonize studies and basketball at the same time. The situation will be of even higher importance after he enters college, as student-athletes need to meet several academic criteria to not just graduate but to also continue playing.

Kiyan, who is the son of NBA great Carmelo Anthony, was asked a question about balancing the two by host Sloane Knows on the "SloaneKnows: NEXT" podcast. While the 17-year-old touched on the complexity of managing studies and basketball, he also shared a simple hack that ensures his academics are addressed properly.

"Yeah, it's not easy at all, it's definitely hard, you know, managing school and basketball,” Anthony said. “But I just try to get all my schoolwork done, you know, after practice, coming home late, I still be trying to get all my schoolwork done or do it before school.

"So any little time you know I could find, I try to get some work done. And I feel like as long as you stay on top of your work, then you good, you just got to study for your test.” (13:00)

Moreover, Kiyan Anthony shared that he regularly wakes up nearly 90 minutes earlier than his school timings, which gives him enough time to ensure everything is in check for the day.

Kiyan Anthony believes Bryce James is not getting the attention that he deserves

Kiyan Anthony is one of the emerging talents in the AAU circuit. The 6-foot-5 combo guard made significant strides this offseason, showing out in the EYBL and deploying highlight-worthy plays in multiple showcase games.

So when he was asked to name a player within the entire high school circuit who he thinks is underrated and ignored by college programs, he named LeBron James' youngest son, Bryce James.

“Bryce James. I feel like he could get a little bit more recognition when it comes to offers and stuff,” Anthony said. “Because him being who he is, people think everything is given to him, but he actually works hard, and I feel like he deserves a little bit more when it comes to that type of stuff. So I would say Bryce.”

Even though one can't project the upside to Bryce James' game, he has yet to receive the attention from Division I programs like Kiyan Anthony. Both of them play at shooting guard and are 2025 class talents.

According to 247Sports, James only has two offers till now (Duquesne and Ohio State). On the other hand, Anthony had more than twenty offers before he shortlisted six preferred programs.