"He was a late bloomer": When Former NBA star Carmelo Anthony talked about his son Kiyan Anthony's growth as a player 

Originally, four-star recruit Kiyan Anthony played baseball more than basketball when he was growing up. However, during an interview on the "Pro Insight" YouTube channel, Kiyan explained that he eventually grew to become better at basketball and stuck with the sport since. This new revelation surprised many, as his dad is NBA legend Carmelo Anthony.

In that interview, Kiyan noted that he was not always good at basketball but eventually became better over time. This is actually supported by his dad, who during the August 27, 2023 entry on his son's "Overtime" vlog series, stated that his son had been a late bloomer.

"As a kid, he was playful, curious about baseball, football," Carmelo noted. "He didn't pick up basketball until a little bit later. He's like a late bloomer." (13:07-13:18)

Kiyan Anthony has been rising up the rankings since he started getting serious about his father's game, basketball. He is currently the No. 34 ranked player from the class of 2025 and already has several accolades under his belt, including the 2024 U17 World Cup, which he won alongside Cameron Boozer and AJ Dybantsa in Turkey early this summer.

The younger Anthony also had a busy summer. Soon after winning the U17 World Cup, he flew to Paris to watch the Olympics alongside his father before participating in the Nike EYBL Peach Jam in Augusta, Georgia.

He then impressed the scouts even further last October as he was one of the standouts during the USA Basketball junior minicamp in Colorado Springs, Colorado, showing much improvement in his physical strength and ball handling while also being a prolific scorer.

What Kiyan Anthony said about his baseball days

During his interview with "Pro Insight," which happened during the USA Basketball junior minicamp, he stated that he loved playing baseball and thought that hitting the ball was super fun. However, things changed when he went to a basketball tryout and made the team.

"I wasn't really playing but I had a lot of fun like on a trips and stuff and then I started getting better," Kiyan Anthony told host Tyler Glazier. "And then I started getting better, I started getting on the court making plays, so I feel like once I started doing that it was like oh basketball was fun." (5:13-5:22)

This eventually led him to "just let baseball go" and he has been focusing on basketball ever since.

Kiyan Anthony is continuing his basketball journey with Long Island Lutheran and will likely continue playing in college. He is choosing between USC, Auburn, and his father's alma mater, Syracuse.