NBA Rumors: Carmelo Anthony is Houston Rockets’ top target
Although the Houston Rockets have clearly improved in each of the last two seasons because of big offseason additions (they traded for Oklahoma City guard James Harden prior to the 2012-2013 season and signed former Orlando Magic and Los Angeles Lakers’ center Dwight Howard in free agency a little less than a year ago), they were defeated by the Portland Trail Blazers in the first round of the playoffs in six games.
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That is why the Rockets believe they need to make a big move once again this offseason. They have been tied to New York Knicks’ forward Carmelo Anthony, Minnesota Timberwolves’ power Kevin Love and most recently, Cleveland Cavaliers’ point guard Kyrie Irving.
According to Bill Ingram of Basketball Insiders, Anthony is the top target.
"Carmelo Anthony is clearly target number one for Houston, yet he is also the least likely to get Houston beyond the second round. Houston was a poor defensive squad in 2013-14 despite having Dwight Howard sending shots back in the middle, and Anthony would only exacerbate that problem. He is also a ball stopper, like James Harden, so the likelihood that Howard would be happy getting even fewer shots is very real. Scoring was not Houston’s problem this season, so adding a one dimensional scorer would not seem to make them substantially better. Having a third huge contract on the books, on the other hand, would certainly mean Houston’s already anemic supporting cast would be even less impressive."
Anthony averaged 27.4 points, 8.1 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game last season and shot 45.2% from the field, 40.2% from beyond the arc and 84.8% from the free throw line.