LONDON – Kobe Bryant was calling. He wanted Carmelo Anthony to get on the Olympic team bus.

But Anthony still had a few words to say. He was talking about his upcoming return to Colorado during the 2012-2013 season. This will be his first visit to Pepsi Center since he forced a trade to the New York Knicks in 2011.

“March 13th,” Anthony said, immediately remembering the date. He didn’t bother trying to deny this will be a big night in his basketball career. He played for the Denver Nuggets 7 1/2 seasons. He led the Nuggets to the playoffs seven straight times.

“I mean, I haven’t been back there,” he said. “This will be the first time.”

And he means that literally. The Knicks and Nuggets did not play in Denver in the 2011-2012 lockout-shortened season, and Anthony has not made any personal trips to the state that once was his home.

“I haven’t seen those people for a long time,” he said.

Anthony was talking after yet another American victory in the Olympic basketball tournament. He’s part of a powerful, generous team that should  breeze to a gold medal. And he’s playing superb basketball. He dropped 37 points on Nigeria in only 14 minutes. He’s enjoying a grand time with his friends/teammates.

But it’s clear, even during these good times, he has Colorado on his mind.

I asked Anthony if he expected to get booed when he returned. He declined to directly answer the question, but he did return to a painful, and strange, night from his final months playing for the Nuggets.

In January 2011 at the Pepsi Center, Anthony scored 35 points and outplayed Kevin Durant while leading Denver to a dramatic victory over Oklahoma City. It was one of his finest hours in a Nuggets uniform.

By then, Anthony had made it clear he no longer wanted to play in Colorado. After the victory, Nuggets fans booed him, and this was serious, high-volume booing. Remember, Carmelo had just delivered victory to the fans who were ridiculing him.

A few days later, Bryant called Nuggets fans “stupid” for booing Carmelo. Kobe used a word in front of “stupid” that we’ll edit out of this family newspaper.

I’m almost sure Anthony will face a revved-up version of that night when he returns wearing a Knicks uniform. Anthony is a creature of the East Coast, and he never truly embraced Colorado during his long stay on the Front Range.

When he made it clear he wanted to escape, Carmelo became one of the most unpopular residents in the state. When he returns, he will be one of the most unpopular visitors.Anthony was thinking back to the thunderous disapproval he heard in January 2011.

“To have them boo,” Anthony said, his trademark smile vanishing, “that was tough.”

Carmelo, it’s only a hint of what awaits you March 13.

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