Kiyan Anthony Talks the Pressure of Following Carmelo’s Legacy, Says He Feels ‘Bad’ for Bronny James

In an appearance on his father's podcast, 7PM in Brooklyn with Carmelo Anthony, recent high school graduate Kiyan Anthony spoke about the pressure of being the son of a former NBA star, just as he's looking to start his college basketball career.

“It’s a new generation, two totally different people, even though that might be your kid,” Kiyan said of how he deals with the expectations placed upon him as the child of a famous athlete, as seen in a clip from the podcast above. “Bronny [James], I kind of felt bad for him... That's my guy. He doesn't speak a lot, he's not gonna go on the internet and say what he's gotta say... You're on social media, you can't even scroll twice without seeing a post with your name on it... At the end of the day, he's nice... People trying to say he's not good... I think he's really nice and I think he really has a chance to prosper in the NBA."

He said that it takes “a few years” for players to be able to play their own game in the NBA, and that no one should expect rising stars, whether their parents are famous athletes or not, to get “situated” immediately. “We have a whole other perspective on it,” added Carmelo. “They think differently about those situations. … They got to deal with nepotism. The nepo baby! It’s very difficult for them, but I will give them credit because they really don’t give a fuck as much as everybody else give a fuck.”

In a post shared on social media last month, Carmelo celebrated his son graduating from Long Island Lutheran High School. "High School graduation... what an accomplishment!" he wrote alongside several pictures of him with his son. "This world has so much in store for you. Proud of you always."

Kiyan is set to continue his Hall of Famer father's legacy at Syracuse later this fall, which also happens to be his father's alma mater. Kiyan is the 36th-ranked player in the 2025 ESPN 100, and committed to Syracuse last year.