Royce White says Melo's being blackballed, criticizes Dudley, LeBron

BIG3 player Royce White injected himself into an NBA conversation Tuesday, suggesting Carmelo Anthony's failure to land with a team is the result of blackballing by the league.

"Melo's absolutely being blackballed," White told Fanatics View, before throwing in a shot at new Los Angeles Lakers forward Jared Dudley. "There's no way that the Lakers would go out and sign Jared Dudley, and not sign Carmelo Anthony."

White then took it a step further, questioning why LeBron James has allowed his close friend Anthony to go unsigned after playing just 10 games last season for the Houston Rockets.

"And another question is, while a guy like LeBron is walking around here like he's the face and voice of the players, how is he letting his 'Banana Boat' brother hang out there in the wings and they go sign Jared Dudley and not Carmelo?" White said. "If anybody watching this thinks that Jared Dudley can hold Carmelo's jockstrap, I'll slap them."

Dudley seemed to take the high road in response.

"This isn't Melo (versus) myself, that man is a (first-ballot Hall of Famer)," Dudley wrote on Twitter. "We all want to see him back in the league. Royce seems (uninformed) when he speaks and this situation in calling my name out. This league is not about who's better (than) who it's (what) players make for the best team."

Anthony's reluctance to embrace a bench role at this stage of his career has been widely viewed as the 35-year-old's primary hurdle in finding another NBA job.

White was a first-round draft pick of the Rockets in 2012 but never played for them after a disagreement over their approach to his mental health issues. He played three games for the Sacramento Kings in 2013-14 and has subsequently played in the National Basketball League of Canada and the BIG3.