Carmelo Anthony has had his fair share of hate across the NBA. There was a time when the hate around the 10x NBA All-Star was off the charts, but he was not the only one feeling this way. This also occurred when Kevin Durant shifted his allegiance to the Golden State Warriors, making them even more unstoppable. This did not sit well with many people. Anthony recently recalled his true feelings from the 2018 WCF and his support for Chris Paul.

“It’s rare that your ops, right, watch you and root for you,” Anthony said on the 7PM in Brooklyn podcast. “In CP’s case, when he was in Houston, all the m———— he played against, all the m———— he battled against, at that moment, were rooting for CP to win a championship.”

CP3’s inclusion alongside James Harden made the Rockets a must-see team. They had even beaten the Warriors in their season opener and won the regular-season series 2-1. Even in the conference finals, they took a 3-2 lead, and Anthony said the Rockets seemed like the only team that could upset the Warriors.

“They were tired of trying to figure out how to beat Steph Curry, and nobody figured it out,” Anthony revealed. “They wanted the game to shift in a new direction. That direction of the Warriors was f—— the game up. It was great for them, but they f—– everybody else up… There are only six or seven organizations that have that history of the league where everybody is going against you. Lakers, Bulls, Warriors, Boston, Miami, and Detroit.”

The Rockets entered the 2017-18 playoffs with their best regular-season record in franchise history. A team of gritty defenders willing to do the dirty work to halt the Warriors’ offensive machine surrounded James Harden and Chris Paul. They used a switch-heavy defensive scheme to put a chokehold on their offense. Durant‘s isolation plays, plus the quick movement of Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, had made it difficult for the entire league.

But Chris Paul’s hamstring injury in Game 5 came as a blessing for the Warriors. Without their floor general, the Rockets looked out of sorts in Games 6 and 7. The Rockets made just 7 of 44 attempts from beyond the arc, as their modern offense, built around a three-point philosophy, came to a screeching halt. The result was that the Warriors won the Conference Finals and would go on to sweep the Cavaliers 4-0 for their second straight championship.

What made the Rockets a threat to the Warriors?

Even Kevin Durant admitted last year that the Rockets series was more difficult than the NBA Finals against the Cavaliers.

“That expanded our team, made us better,” Durant said. “And then once we got to the Finals, we were able to sweep the Cavs. But I think that Houston series really was the Finals for us.”

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This was on the back of James Harden’s long-awaited MVP season. He became only the fourth player to average at least 30 points per game and help lead his team to 65 wins.

Chris Paul had nagging injuries, limiting his availability to just 58 games. But for the team to succeed, the other players stepped up. Eric Gordon averaged 18 points for the season, Trevor Ariza consistently scored 11 points per game, and PJ Tucker was efficient in his 37.1% from deep. As a result, the Rockets possessed the league’s top offense and the sixth-best defense.

Without Paul, the Rockets lost to the Warriors in Game 7 by just 9 points. Their efficient shooting from beyond the arc fell horribly flat. It was their greatest strength, but they crumbled under pressure, missing an NBA playoff record 27 consecutive 3-pointers.