Mo Bamba wants to set the record straight: He doesn’t like Cole Anthony.
Of course, the Orlando Magic center was only kidding on Saturday as he addressed the media ahead of the start of the regular season. Bamba and Anthony were AAU teammates on PSA Cardinals in New York during the summer of 2016 and have stayed close since then.
Now, the two are teammates once again, but this time in Orlando.
Bamba and Anthony were in constant contact in the days and months leading up to the NBA draft. Bamba would often joke with Anthony that Orlando would draft him but it didn’t become serious until the Magic were on the clock and actually took Anthony with the 15th overall pick.
“I want it on the record that I do not like the kid at all. I want that to be a direct quote,” Bamba said. “In all seriousness, Cole has been a great friend, one of my best friends since my junior year in high school. It’s really funny because he was there on my draft night and I kept telling him, ‘We’re going to draft you!’ At least, I was telling him, ‘This will be you really soon.’ As the years compiled, I was like, ‘We might really draft you.’ Then, six months or so before the draft, then three months and a month and I’m like, ‘We really, really might draft you.’
Bamba tweeted at Anthony on the night of the NBA draft and hilariously told him that he would pick him up at the airport once he stopped crying at his party. Unfortunately, Anthony later confirmed that Bamba never showed up to pick him.
I can confirm he did not https://t.co/8e3vCCAKTO
— Cole Anthony (@The_ColeAnthony) November 20, 2020
Bamba admires the love that Anthony has for the game of basketball and loves that they are now teammates once again. The stakes now are much higher than before but they are confident they can lead the Magic in the years to come.
Anthony is averaging 12 points, 3.7 assists, three rebounds and one steal through three games while he is shooting 48.1% from the field. His 36 total points rank fourth among all rookies with one game left to play on Saturday night versus the Charlotte Hornets.
Meanwhile, Bamba was recently cleared for contact in practice for the first time in training camp. The 22-year-old has been held out of basketball activities after working through some lingering effects of the coronavirus but is working toward returning to the court soon.
Orlando kicks off the regular season on Wednesday vs. the Miami Heat.
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