Last month, a blockbuster trade landed Denver Nuggets superstar Carmelo Anthony with the New York Knicks, sparking a media frenzy and hopes for the team’s first NBA championship since 1973. The renewed optimism for Gotham hoops comes as Melo joins former Phoenix Suns sensation Amar’e Stoudemire, who this season inked a five-year deal worth nearly $100 million in the Knicks’ aggressive push for a title — and relevancy.
“The Knicks are a classic franchise, so it’s nice to see them having a moment,” says GQ senior editor Will Welch.
Off the hardwood, both athletes are known as much for their style swagger as they are for their stutter step.
Stoudemire — who threw out the ceremonial first pitch at a Yankees-Tampa Bay game in September — has cemented his sartorial standing by wrangling Anna Wintour to Madison Square Garden for a Knicks game.
Meanwhile, Anthony has been a tabloid fixture since Stoudemire threw a star-studded dinner at the West Village’s Spotted Pig to welcome his newest teammate and longtime friend.
The dapper dandies certainly know how to make a Big Apple entrance — pocket square and all. “Amar’e feels like an old soul, in a way,” says Welch.
“He’s got the whole prep thing going on. You see Amar’e in bow ties, chunky-framed glasses and cardigans.”
In 2009, the Brooklyn-born, Baltimore-raised Anthony began working with celebrity stylist Khalilah Williams-Webb, who refined his aesthetic.
Much to her delight, he shaved his trademark braids without nagging.“My first question for him was, ‘Are you going to shave your braids?’ And he said no. [But] I went to Denver one day, and they were gone. I was so excited,” says Williams-Webb, who recently picked up varsity letterman jackets and crew-neck sweatshirts for the newly minted Knick.
She put him in custom suits with pops of color and tossed the baggy jackets out with his untucked, oversize shirts.
Stoudemire and Anthony, who stand at 6-foot-10 and 6-foot-8, respectively, both have pulled off style coups for men of their height.
The stars — who entered the NBA while in their teens — are devotees of LA-based tailor Waraire Boswell. At 6-foot-7, Boswell is an expert at fitting a taller, more athletic frame.
“Despite all of the money at their disposal, they can’t just walk into Barneys and Bergdorf and buy off the rack,” says Welch. “They have to have their stuff made for them.”
Knicks fans, however, love them best in blue and orange mesh.
Stoudemire, who only started playing organized ball at 14, was drafted into the NBA right out of high school, while Anthony played a year at Syracuse, won a national championship and entered the pros with just one year of college under his belt.
“Both of them have come really close to an NBA championship, but fell short,” says Robert Tuchman, author of “The 100 Sporting Events You Must See Live.”
“Being in New York should change that.”
Thus far, the team is trying to jell, and has been streaky at best.
But the new additions have already captured the hearts of basketball and fashion fans alike.
Here’s how they stack up against each other in the personal arena . . .
Not-so-humble abodes
* Stoudemire: The swinging bachelor is in the penthouse of 99 Jane St. that opened in November after the previous tenant, Goldman Sachs banker Richard Kimball Jr., angered neighbors with his hard-partying ways. The $37,500-a-month pad has 4,500 square feet inside and another 4,500 square feet of outdoor space to entertain hopeful gal pals.
* Anthony: The recent arrival hasn’t yet committed to an apartment, but The Post has reported that he’s mulling two locations in SoHo, including the same Mercer Street building where Jon Bon Jovi lives (also the place where Mark Madoff committed suicide in December). He’s reportedly considering the upscale Soho Mews on West Broadway as well.
Marital status
* Stoudemire: “Amar’e is a lot more private with his private life,” says sports author Robert Tuchman. The dapper dandy was linked to Kanye’s ex, Amber Rose, in December, but the pair denied a romantic relationship.
* Anthony: Carmelo Anthony wed MTV personality and longtime girlfriend La La Vazquez at a star-studded ceremony at Cirpriani 42nd Street in July. Amar’e, Kim Kardashian, LeBron James and Spike Lee watched as Melo wed Vazquez, 31, in a custom navy Waraire Boswell tuxedo.
Mass appeal
Stoudemire: The Florida native has made no secret of his design aspirations, and plans to collaborate with Rachel Roy on men’s and women’s collections, to be rolled out in the fall. The pair was spotted discussing details at The Lion in December.
Anthony: While his teammate rubs shoulders with the fashion pack, Melo’s hanging with the VH1 film crew chronicling his and wife La La’s move from Denver to the Big Apple, tentatively called “La La’s Full Court Life.” It’s a follow-up to the network’s “La La’s Full Court Wedding.”
Spectacles
* Stoudemire: He rocks rec specs while posting up on opponents, but in his off-time, Stoudemire gets his cache of nerd-chic glasses from SoHo’s Silver Lining. From chunky, square Arthur Miller styles to the rounded Urkel variety, his frames are an integral part of Stoudemire’s playful, preppy aesthetic.
* Anthony: “He has to have his shades,” says celebrity stylist Khalilah Williams-Webb, who also plucks aviator sunglasses from Silver Lining’s vintage collection. “He loves Silver Lining because they have frames that he knows no one else will have,” she adds.
Vogue love
* Stoudemire: Editrix Anna Wintour is a famous fan of athletes such as Roger Federer and LeBron James; Stoudemire can now join the pantheon. Stoudemire — whom Wintour personally invited to last fall’s Fashion Night Out — has sat front-row with her at a Tommy Hilfiger show and appears in April’s issue, playing a hilarious game of one-on-one with the magazine’s resident dandy, Hamish Bowles.
* Anthony: He’s yet to land a coveted editorial spread, but his stylist hopes New York helps cultivate his fashion profile. “It’s the fashion capital. There are so many things to see here, and the streets are an inspiration,” says Williams-Webb. “I think it will be easier to convince him to try new things.
Style & sensibility
* Stoudemire: The slim power forward, who works with Rachel Johnson, LeBron James’ stylist, favors custom suits by Gucci and Waraire Boswell. “He’s really up on what’s going on right now,” says Welch. “He looks great in a tux, which is really hard when you’re 6-foot-10. He takes risks and pulls them off.” Whether he’s wearing a casual leather jacket and jeans or a bow tie and charcoal pinstripe suit, the fashion phenom hardly makes a style mistep, Welch says. “Amar’e tends to nail it,” he says.
* Anthony: When Melo shed his braids and baggy togs, adopting a cleaner silhouette, he began his ascent into the league’s style elite. “He’s coming into his own and figuring out who he is off the court,” says Welch. “He’s isn’t as consistent as Amar’e. He looks best when he keeps it simple.” He committed some flagrant fouls over the NBA All-Star Weekend when he showed up at one event in a flamboyant plaid suit and at another in a head-to-toe mustard-color ensemble. But Welch insists his best accessory is God-given. “He has an incredible smile,” he says.
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