There had been no reason to doubt Carmelo Anthony's competitiveness, but just this once, Steve Smith was concerned.
It was February of 2002, and Smith — the head coach at prep hoops powerhouse Oak Hill Academy — was preparing for a showcase game in Trenton, N.J., that would pit star forward Anthony against St. Vincent-St. Mary of Akron, Ohio, and its own prodigy, LeBron James.
Anthony and James had met for the first time soon after their arrival at a New Jersey hotel and had become instantly almost inseparable. They talked in the lobby, then in Anthony's room, then in James'.