It’s been a whirlwind year for Carmelo Anthony. After spending the majority of last season feuding with the New York Knicks front office, he requested an offseason trade. With a no movement clause in his contract, the Knicks struggled to find the right deal for their scoring forward.
Anthony limited his list of destinations to the Houston Rockets and Cleveland Cavaliers. Neither team had, or were willing to part with, assets that pleased the Knicks. Eventually, Anthony expanded his list to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Moments later, he was dealt to Oklahoma City for Enes Kanter, Doug McDermott, and the Chicago Bulls second-round pick.
Used to being the number one option throughout his career, Anthony struggled to fit in alongside Russell Westbrook and Paul George. The ball stopped and the shots didn’t drop.
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Things turned around in December, when Anthony decided to sacrifice. He turned into a catch-and-shoot option, cutting down on his isolation opportunities. He’s averaging a career-low in field goal attempts (15.5) and points (17.6), but the Thunder are in a prime playoff position and improving every month.
Anthony has a player option for next season. Should he pick-up that option, he will be owed $27.9 million. If he declines, he becomes an unrestricted free agent.
Jab Steps and Jokes
What does Carmelo Anthony bring to the table? Jab steps. When this man has the ball in his hands, he’s going to jab and jab and jab and jab. He’s the Wladimir Klitschko of the NBA. He’ll jab you to death before raising up for the shot. Maybe he’ll drive past you. If that happens, you should probably head to the bench, hanging your head in shame.
In Oklahoma City, he’s reduced his jab steps. He’s turned into a big hitter who knocks down trailing 3s and finishes alley-oops. Would he be willing to sacrifice the same way on a different team? Not unless they have two other stars, with one being the ultimate alpha in the league.
While Anthony has never been known as a great defender, he’s held his own in Oklahoma City. It helps that he’s able to play alongside two of the best perimeter defenders in the league and Steven Adams. Would he be a good defender on another team? Probably not.
Whatever he gives you on the court is just a bonus to the personality a team would be acquiring. I’ve never hung out with Carmelo Anthony, but I’d imagine that it would be fun. We’d walk down the street and I’d poke him in the ribs just to hear him yell out curse words. He’d show me his hat collection and then laugh at how ridiculous I look in them. He’d tell me stories of the NBA life and I’d tell him stories of the NBA writers life. It’d be fun. Carmelo Anthony seems fun when he’s away from basketball.
That’s the kind of guy you need on your basketball team. A guy who is fun away from basketball. You may think that you need a really good basketball player to score points and help you win games, but that’s too simplistic. Your team isn’t scoring enough points to win four of the seven games that matter. You may as well be around people who like to have fun away from the court.
Jab steps, hoodies, and hats. That’s what you’re getting from Carmelo Anthony.
No Movement
Even if the Thunder wanted to trade Anthony, his no-movement clause remains in tact. It’s doubtful that he’s budged on his offseason stance. If he has to be moved, he’d only want to go to Houston or Cleveland. And given their performance this season, I’m not even sure he wants to go to Cleveland at this point.
But, the Thunder are not trading Anthony. Not only because there will be a lack of suitors, but because they have no intentions of throwing away this season and everything they’ve built thus far. It’s the same reason why they won’t deal Paul George.
The only way Sam Presti moves Anthony is if things turn very sour in the next week. How could that happen? I’m glad I asked myself.
– Russell Westbrook gets tired of Anthony steal his rebounds.
– Anthony’s coarse language upsets the front office. The Thunder franchise has always been tight-lipped and buttoned up. They’ve loosened that top button in the past couple of years, but Anthony’s language is not family friendly.
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– Anthony gets frustrated when the team runs out of hoodies and headbands. Anthony will accept a lack of sleeves. But he will not accept a lack of hoodies and headbands. No player should, if we’re being honest.
– Phil Jackson becomes president of the organization.
– The Thunder can get a bag of chips in return. Not regular Lays chips, though. He’s worth more than you standard pack of Lays. He’s worth at least a bag of Dorito’s. Maybe even the family size bag. However, he’s definitely not worth that giant box filled with a variety of bags.