Phil Jackson on Carmelo Anthony today: "We have not able to win with him on the court. He would be a player better off somewhere else."
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 14, 2017
JUST IN: Carmelo Anthony splits from wife La La https://t.co/ue8VOr7e2m pic.twitter.com/4CcBhMTj1A
— New York Daily News (@NYDailyNews) April 17, 2017
Carmelo Anthony reportedly got a stripper pregnant before his separation from wife La La. https://t.co/TWkvfYjWV5 pic.twitter.com/fIVoUDSFPn
— The Sporting News (@sportingnews) April 18, 2017
Yeah, so as you can see from above, it has not been a great last few days for Carmelo Anthony. His days in New York seem to be all but numbered. La La was one of the main reasons he stayed in New York in the first place a few years back when he had the option to bolt to Chicago.
Let’s also be clear about another thing, Melo asked for a trade at the deadline. That quote above from Phil was him explaining that. He said Melo would be better off somewhere else because Melo said that to him. That’s a portion of a quote taken out of context. Phil was just being honest, probably to a fault. The false narratives that get drawn up and pushed around by the New York media are despicable.
That aside, Melo wants out and Phil wants to trade him. Melo owns a “No Trade” clause which allows him to veto any trade Phil comes to him with. Phil won’t trade Melo for “nothing” so Phil won’t approve a trade to a team Melo approves of without getting back what he deems as adequate. You see how this is getting a little sticky? It’s kind of a catch 22 situation. Explains why it was so hard to deal Melo at the deadline.
This offseason though, Melo now becomes an expiring contract with his player option that he will most certainly exercise next summer given the highly inflated cap since he signed his current deal. This might add in a few teams on the list of suitors. A list we’ll go more in-depth on once the time gets closer.
The teams that fit the bill for a possible trade and could satisfy the desires of both the Knicks and Melo include a winning team, preferably a title contender upon Melo’s arrival. A location he approves of, preferably a big market and for the Knicks, a team that has both the cap room to take on money and tradeable assets in the form of first round picks and young role players.
When you combine all of that, not many teams presently fit these criteria. Now I know a bunch will change from when the finals end to July 1st, but there’s one team that I think fits here. A team tat has pretty much every element for an amicable trade on both sides. A team who’s roster won’t be having any major changes. Who is this mystery team you ask?
The Milwaukee Bucks.
Yup, not what you expected right? Hear me out. The deal would be Carmelo Anthony and Joakim Noah in exchange for Greg Monroe and Milwaukee’s 2017 first round pick (17th Overall).
The Bucks get two veteran leaders in the locker room for one of the youngest teams in the league. One of them still being an elite top tier lethal scorer. The other a former defensive player of the year and though he seems to have lost a step still would make a solid anchor to a 2nd unit. Monroe and Noah’s contracts are virtually identical in per year average and The Bucks will have the extra cap to take on Melo’s contract.
The Bucks are already flushed with young talent, they could manage to skip on the 17th overall draft pick. Especially if they are getting someone as productive as Carmelo Anthony in return. He could help Giannis, Middleton, and Jabari immensely on offense. A guy to really help each of them refine their offensive skillset. Melo does everything well offensively. He can beat you in any way possible. Can hit a jump shot from anywhere, he can blow by you off the dribble, go back to the basket and post you up and still has arguably the best midrange triple threat game in the business. All three of those guys have a hole in their offensive game in one of those areas.
Jason Kidd is also the coach and GM of the Bucks. He played with Melo for one year in 2012 in New York. It was a magical year. I’m sure Melo would love to reunite and so would Kidd. They know what each other are truly about. To top all of this off from the Bucks side, They’ve been trying to trade Greg Monroe pretty much since the day they signed him.
From the Knicks point of view, Phil rids himself of Melo and the headache. He drops the Noah contract off the books that many people saw as a mistake and he gets a viable first round pick to add to the young core he’s already begun to build. This would allow the Knicks to add up to four players around Porzingis and the $30 Million plus of cap space they will have this summer.
Phil also now gets Greg Monroe, a player he chased after strongly two years ago when he was a free agent. Monroe fits great into the triangle offense. He’s a great passer and has no problem playing the high post. Two things that are prudent in the Triangle.
99.9% of people have no idea what the Triangle offense is and yet they seem to already know they hate it? How can you hate something when you don’t know what it is? Oh, that’s right, that’s what we do in 2017. The Triangle offense isn’t some locked in set offense. It’s a series of choices and movements made based on positioning of the defense. It promotes ball movement and efficiency. It’s about making the right rotations and passes based on what the defense is giving you.
The philosophy behind it believes that if the ball is moved properly within the Triangle offense it is virtually unstoppable. There will always be a hole in the defense exposed at some point. I think 11 championships speaks for itself. The Triangle isn’t antiquated at all, the people talking about it are just idiots. People watch it all the time and don’t even realize it. Have you watched a Warriors game recently? You know, the best team in thew NBA? Yeah, they run philosophies of the Triangle offense in their half court sets.
That being said, Melo to Milwaukee is a viable option. It provides benefits for both sides, everyone gets what they want and the Bucks become the second best team in the east, on paper. The only thing I could see potentially holding this up is the location. Melo is known to want to be in a big city, he’s a huge “life outside of basketball” guy. Then again, all of that may have been Lala’s doings. Maybe we’ll see a new Melo. A Melo concentrated only on winning. A Melo Knicks fans have been waiting 6 years for. One it seems at this time we’ll never get to see.
