Outside of the game changing on the court, the game has certainly changed off the court with player/fan interaction.
The biggest reason for this change is the emergence of social media, where fans have a direct line of contact to players. As a result, criticism is heard loud and clear by players through the medium known as the internet.
One of the players firing back at the nonsense spread on the internet is Carmelo Anthony. To add, this is not the first time Anthony has clapped back on Instagram. This conversation was your typical NBA debate on Instagram, and it somehow caught Melo’s eye.
Carmelo Anthony is my new favorite player.
(via @NBA_Reddit) pic.twitter.com/RDW8UzsZCO
— Chris Walder (@WalderSports) August 18, 2018
When it comes to athletes clapping back against social media trolls, it is a double-edged sword. If they do defend themselves, it is looked at like pettiness, or punching down. If they don’t, we are all human at the end of the day — this type of commentary bothers us. So, most athletes sit back and bite their tongue.
With the emergence of Kevin Durant going back and forth with trolls — the norm of ‘don’t respond’ could have changed.
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