What Cavs won’t do, do for Love

borat memeI love NBA trade rumors.  To paraphrase Borat, they make me very excite.

Juicy NBA rumors, well, they’re like my stories, the jostling of rosters, a virtual fantasy team turned reality, sometimes worthwhile but far more frequently failing to live up to expectations which, when it’s all said and done, makes discussing the rumors the most thrilling part of the trade.

With the combined recent dysfunction of the Cleveland Cavaliers (have lost six of their last eight) and New York Knickerbockers (have lost eight of their last eleven), it was only a matter of time before the rumor mill started swirling.  The latest morsel to make the hairs on the back of my neck tingle involves the Knicks allegedly putting the disgruntled Carmelo Anthony on the trading block.

The Knicks apparently want him out.  It was only a matter of time.

Remember a few years ago when we thought it would be cool if all the guys from the 2003 Draft, i.e., LeBron, D-Wade, Carmelo, Chris Bosh, played together on anything other than the Olympic team?  Actually, three of them did.  They won titles in Miami.

wade-bosh-james-cartoon-illustration

Carmelo, however, was the odd man out.  He remains the only top five pick from that now infamous draft to not win an NBA championship.  Even Darko Milicic, who got picked in that draft before everyone not named LeBron, finagled a ring in Detroit before eventually shuffling off into irrelevance.

Back then seeing ‘Melo and LeBron play together was what NBA geeks like me dreamed of.  These days, the only person who wants to see Carmelo play with LeBron is Carmelo… and perhaps the New York Knicks, otherwise they wouldn’t have kick started that rumor.

Apparently some pencil pusher within the Knicks front office thought it would make good headlines to throw the Melo-to-Cleveland-for-Love rumor out there knowing NBA fans like me would just eat it up, cherishing even the remote possibility of it happening.

There’s literally no way this trade will happen.  But it’s still fun to talk about.

Here’s the thing though.  If LeBron wanted this trade to happen, if he really wanted it, the Cavs would have pulled the trigger by now.  If he thought (and why would he) that Carmelo could bring value-added to the Cavs, more so than Kevin Love, Cleveland would be fitting Carmelo for a uniform today.

But he doesn’t for a number of reasons, most of which being Carmelo Anthony is still Carmelo Anthony, not to mention older than Kevin Love and scoring and rebounding less than Kevin Love.

Don’t get me wrong.  It would be fun to watch but the risk-reward just doesn’t add up.  The best case scenario for Cleveland is that Carmelo provides another scoring threat that would take attention away from the other two big scorers on that squad en route to a championship which, it bears noting, the Cavaliers did last year with a healthy Kevin Love.  The worst case (and far more likely) scenario is that the team implodes when Carmelo refuses to pass anyone the basketball.

Carmelo-Anthony

If I’m Cleveland, do I pull the trigger on this trade?  Of course not!  As a fan, do I want to see this trade happen?  Of course I do.

Both of these teams have businesses to run.  Determining all potential outcomes of this trade is part of building (or potentially sabotaging) a championship.  Does Carmelo give the Cavs a better shot at a title in the short term?  Nobody knows for sure but damn if it isn’t fun to debate.

Far more often than not, we tend to overreact to slumps and the Cavs are smack dab in the middle of a nasty one.  Barring any cataclysmic injuries, the Cleveland Cavaliers should still win the Eastern Conference.  They’ll likely do so with Kevin Love and without Carmelo Anthony.

The Los Angeles Clippers on the other hand.  Now THAT’S a different story.  They’re interested in Carmelo too.  Have you heard the latest?


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16 Replies to “What Cavs won’t do, do for Love”

  1. Life is like a box of chocolates . LBJ has a team built around him to win a title last season by default and now he’s bit#hing and whining because they have no play-maker Kyle Korver, Tristan Thompson aka Mr Khloe Kardashian , Kevin Love and Iman Shumpert . Hey LBJ , how’s that move back to Cleveland now working out ? Cleveland doesn’t rock , unless you’re in the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame .

  2. Melo is a great scorer, but more ball dominant than Kobe…
    LeBron has been whining about management not getting another ball distributor, Melo is anything but. The Cavs should be looking at Ricky Rubio if they can get him on the cheap, though with Kyrie and LeBron, why they need a PG is beyond me…I guess for the second unit.

    Melo to Clips makes way more sense.
    Then they could officially change the name of the squad to the LA Titanic.

  3. Al…

    I think once they give Korver time in that lineup, to get familiar with everyone’s spacing, they’ll be just fine. But does that mean Love will be getting less shots from the perimeter?

  4. Yea, Bleed, I’m not sure the Rubio to Cleveland deal makes much sense. I like either Kyrie or LeBron will the ball in their hands in that offense.

    I do like Melo to L.A. if they don’t have to give up one of the big three (or four if you include Redick). What does L.A. have to lose? It’s not like they’re beating either Golden State or San Anton anyway.

  5. Turns out Rubio makes 13 mil a year so there goes that.
    Maybe the Cavs should call the Lakers and try to get Marcelo Huertas (who is a pass first, second and third PG) and a bargain at 1.5mil per or Jose Calderon who is a solid vet PG who can also drill the 3 but makes 7.7 mil per.

    Lakers are going nowhere this year, and PG’s both are wasting away on the Lakers bench because Russell, Williams and Ingram are the main ball handlers for Luke right now.

    The Cavs could likely get either or both of them on the cheap for draft picks, trade exceptions and/or cash and maybe even get another decent vet like Nick Young in the deal.

  6. If the Cavs could land Melo without having to give up Love, I’d make the deal in a heartbeat.

    I’m not sure how L.A. can sign him without having to give up Griffin but if that’s possible, why can’t Cleveland do it as well?

    FYI, Carmelo is making $25 mil this year and he also obviously has a no-trade clause.

    Like I said, it’s fun to talk about but putting him on a title contender that could afford him, or even want him, looks highly unlikely at this point.

  7. Everybody always forgets that in the NBA, you have to trade similar values in terms of contracts. That means Carmelo Anthony ain’t going anywhere at $25 million.

    That notwithstanding, why the fuck does anybody want the high-mileage car that is Carmelo?

  8. Dubs…

    That’s why I said the best part of these rumors is the chatter since a) he ain’t going anywhere and b) if he does, what’s the best case scenario.

    I will say this. I do like him with the Clippers if they don’t have to give much. Heck, they’re a bunch of damaged goods so he’ll fit right in.

  9. New York loves drama and if there isn’t any, create some. The NYC media nearby is really whipping this whole Melo-is-outta-here stuff into a frenzy but as was stated earlier it is much easier said than done. I liked your comment about him going to the Clips. That would be the cherry on the sundae that always melts every April when it gets “warm.”

  10. Here’s the thing, Burnsy.

    Let’s say the Knicks do move him. Then what?

    They gave this Melo-Noah-Rose experiment about a half a year and while yes, those guys had some mileage on their legs, I’m not too sure Hornacek was the guy for this job.

    So the plan now would be to build around Porzingis? How long til he’s ready to take over the number one role and will he ever be?

    There’s lots of questions to be asked. Knicks fans were led to believe Phil Jackson would be making the right decisions. Instead, this turns out to be the same old Knickerbockers.

    I can’t believe I fell for the banana in the tailpipe.

  11. A three-team deal will be on the cards , if the Knicks can get ‘melo to agree to a rescind his no-trade clause , because it appears . Phil Jackson will trade the forward to quite possibly the Los Angeles Clippers in exchange for Blake Griffin with another player to be named as part of the deal, from a third vested party.

    Your thoughts on the Niners’ hiring Jon Lynch to succeed Trent Baalke as the team’s general manager ? That came straight out of left field don’t you think ? I know the ‘Kush ‘ has been made legal in the state of California , but the York family, as owners , have become extremely desperate. This has the makings of Matt Millen hire , with it likely to blow up in their faces. Lynch has no experience of being a front office executive in spite of having a great career as a player with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.


    http://www.tampabay.com/sports/football/bucs/ex-buc-john-lynch-named-general-manager-of-san-francisco-49ers-reports-say/2311309

    http://www.tampabay.com/sports/football/bucs/ex-buc-john-lynch-named-general-manager-of-san-francisco-49ers-reports-say/2311309

  12. Al…

    I would think at this point, ‘Melo would want out. Even the fans have turned against him. If the right opportunity presented itself, why wouldn’t he get the hell out of dodge.

    Milhouse and I disagree on the Lynch hire. I think it was a good move. He’ll hold people accountable. As long as he has someone by his side to crunch the numbers, you’d have to believe the guy can spot talent.

    Besides, the Niners have no place to go but up.

  13. The banana in the tailpipe analogy sounds painful indeed. Hey, you hit on another key point. Hornacek was most assuredly not the right guy for the job. Same old Knickerbockers. The Zen-Master isn’t even gonna get it done. It’s up to you New York, New York.

  14. Sometimes I think we are brothers from another mother, Bleed.

    Glad someone caught that.

    And both are classic versions, it’s tough to pick a favorite.

    Kinda like Regulate and I Keep Forgettin’.

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