Carmelo Anthony advocates for NBA players to engage in live streaming after games instead of traditional press conferences. This shift allows athletes to communicate directly with their audience and control their narratives.
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Athletes moving into streaming is no longer a side story. It is becoming part of the way they speak directly to their audience.
UFC stars Max Holloway and Renato Moicano, for instance, are active in that space, while Arman Tsarukyan has appeared on major influencer streams. Boxing champion Ryan Garcia has also embraced live streaming.
Basketball is moving the same way. Jaylen Brown and Scottie Barnes are among the NBA names already using streams to show personality and control their own message.
That wider shift gives Carmelo Anthony’s latest view extra weight, as the former 10-time NBA All-Star believes streams should replace post-match press conferences altogether.
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Speaking on “7PM in Brooklyn”, Melo made the case that players no longer need to hand their immediate reaction to traditional media settings.
He said: “Why give a press conference to a company? When I’m my own IP, I can go, do my own press conference. Streaming is a new press conference.
“Right, nobody wanna sit in a room and answer questions on five, six, seven reporters. They wanna get to the nitty gritty of it and face it face to face with your followers and the people who’s actually watching. They are the ones who really wanna ask the real questions.”
Carmelo Anthony believes that live streaming allows players to communicate directly with fans and take control of their narratives.
Jaylen Brown and Scottie Barnes are among the NBA players who have embraced live streaming to showcase their personalities.
Live streaming is becoming a primary method for athletes to engage with fans, moving away from traditional media formats like press conferences.
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The idea is modern, but it is not simple. Press conferences are controlled environments, usually shaped by PR staff, team rules and league expectations.
Streams remove much of that structure. Players can sound more relaxed, but that comfort can create headlines, as Brown recently showed with remarks about Joel Embiid and NBA officiating.
There is also a commercial issue. Press conferences form part of the media ecosystem that broadcasters pay heavily to access, especially when live rights depend on player availability.
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