I would say that the Summer of Lebron taught Melo nothing, and point at the Lakers, Spurs, Celtics, and Mavs as examples of where solid rotations and team chemistry turns out to be way better than a bunch of stars thrown together. But that's not what it is about for Melo. As he says to Chris Sheridan, he wants to be wanted. Walking through the Concrete Jungle Where Dreams Are Made Of, people were yelling for him to come. He is only human. It is understandable that he wants to have a good time and look out for himself. But still, what a fool.
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| Suck my cancer-free balls, George Karl and Nene |
Teams don't like being held hostage. It sets a bad precedent when one player can hold an entire organisation to ransom. NBA teams haven't yet been subject to the holdout practice that runs rampant in the NFL, instead being treated to either ambivalence when they're on the court (Melo this year), a lack of offseason work meaning they are out of shape and unfit to play (Elton Brand last year, Baron Davis every year), or such a bad attitude that they can't be played anyway (Starbury at the Knicks, Iverson at Memphis). What Anthony is doing to the Nuggets right now will be riling them right up. They know they can't keep him. But they don't want to give him away for nothing either. With the news this morning, they will probably have to. The Knicks aren't going to pay through the teeth for someone who is coming there anyway.
But wait, you say! Only one player in the entire league has big enough cohones to tell his team how his ass taste by demanding a No Trade Clause - Kobe Bryant. If the Nuggets want to trade Carmelo, they don't have to ask him first. Enjoy Minnesota, bitch.
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| Kevin Love is so good at rebounding because the ball never goes in |
The problem is that Melo's contract is guaranteed until the end of this season, with an Early Termination Option that you can bet your house will be exercised. This puts the poor old Nuggets in a fix - the teams that can give them back the most value for Anthony (Nets, Kings, Clippers) will not accept him without a multiple year extension. After reading this morning's news, they know he will just opt out and run to MSG, kind of like this.
So my original thought was a little misguided - Anthony has worked this out and is being quite shrewd. But I still think he is a fool for making this so public. A deal could have been worked out quietly and everyone could have been happy. Now, it is highly likely the Nuggets will be absolutely screwed over by the Knicks, leaving Denver full of hatred for their once favourite son.
The only other option would be a team that could take Anthony on his current contract - that is, a team that is a contender for the title right now and just needs a little more help. The obvious one is Chicago, but he could fit into a lot of other situations as well (Atlanta, San Antonio, Orlando, Dallas). But what GM would give up any value for half a year of probably half-hearted effort? It would be an extremely bold move.
I'd love to see Denver tell Anthony to jump in a lake, and then trade him for peanuts to some black hole like Memphis or Toronto, a la the Minnesota Vikings telling Randy Moss to go and get effed. In all likelihood though, Anthony will get what he wants. It's just not fair. Still, I suppose it will be fun watching Anthony and Amare playing together. At the very least, it should hurt Raymond Felton's fantasy value, which is good since I failed to draft him in any league.
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