5 trades to revitalize the Los Angeles Clippers

1. Jamal Crawford, Redick, Diamond Stone and Brice Johnson and a first round pick to the New York Knicks for Carmelo Anthony

In the words of Jalen Rose, “You got to give the people, what they want”. This is the likely scenario the media has played, so let’s delve into it.

It wouldn’t be wise for the Clippers to trade any of their core players such as Paul, Jordan and Griffin for Anthony. Anthony, although an all-time great and still scoring, isn’t the explosive player from the past. For the Clippers, he could be a legit second or third threat and be the spark they need in tough stretches.

But the one asset that makes Anthony great probably won’t fly with Doc Rivers. Anthony craves iso-motion basketball and the Clippers do a lot of passing and moving. But, with a point guard who can pass and score, and a power forward who is explosive, Anthony will create mismatches and make the defense choose between his hot shooting or Paul and his lobs to Griffin or Jordan.

Next: 5 trade ideas to save the Toronto Raptors

Anthony won’t become a defensive ace if he goes to Los Angeles, so we know his defense will still be a liability. Still, it will give him a  chance to become the Clyde Drexler of this era. Drexler became an integral part of the Houston Rockers 1995 NBA title run after being traded there by the Portland Trailblazers. Anthony, already stuck in a bad situation in New York, has a chance to change his season like Drexler did. Whether or not this or the aforementioned trade situations will occur, we will have to see around the trade deadline.