http://espn.go.com/new-york/nba/story/_/id/11067593/carmelo-anthony-inform-new-york-knicks-free-agency-decision-june-23-according-sources

And away we go!

Apparently the Heat want him too. This is going to be the most obnoxious Three weeks waiting for free agency to start. Might even be worse than the nfl draft buildup, although that will be hard to beat.

I read the article on the heat wanting him. Lebron, Wade, Bosh and Anthony would all opt out of current contracts and take less money in order to sign all four in Miami and stay under the cap. They would fill the rest of the team with league minimum type players and old vets.

I don't particularly care for it due to the disparity it will create, but I have to give them credit for taking less money in an attempt to win a championship. I don't see how something like this is preventable, but I am not sure it is good for the nba as a whole.

The ironic thing about all this is the salary cap restrictions are probably making this happen and not prventing it. If a team like the lakers could go crazy and offer one of them a 30-40+ million dollar a year contract and still fill out their roster with good players and not be killed by the cap/luxury tax then I doubt they would all turn it down. Because of the cap they are likely only losing around $10 million a year and there is a good chance they will make much of that back on endorsements. So why not do it if the money isn't all that different?

I'm not sure Melo makes the Heat a better team. It gives them another scoring option, but he's a ball hog, always takes a lot of shots, and hasn't played defense his entire career.

Thats what I don't get either... How does Melo really make them better. Take the current Heat team... I'd argue that they would be better if you subtract Bosh and replace him with 2 or 3 really good players that will play for a little less to be on a winning team and possibly be get a ring. Let Wade and Bron run the offense, but now you have a couple really good role players around them and / or better guys coming off the bench.

Ya. If all they did was drop Mario Chalmers and picked up a league average starting point guard, they'd be sooooo much better.

Do Not Want

I would get rid of Wade before I got rid of Bosh.

With proper motivation, Anthony is an amazing player. Look no further than the olympics and international ball when he had coaches like Pop and Coach K guiding him. Spoelstra isn't quite in that category, but he would be great in Miami.

He would be much more unselfish (and motivated to win a ring) and get much higher percentage shots with Lebron and Wade. He also is a pretty darn good rebounder so even with the Heat playing small ball 90% of the time they get much better.

Once the Spurs are done, I don't see anyone slowing a roster like that.

Problem is, I wouldn't trust him defensively at all.

Melo has the ability to do all kinds of stuff. Very talented player. But I have never really seen him create for others.

Defense is all about effort and a coach that actually teaches team defense. This is especially true if you have the athleticism and size to be a good defender, which Anthony does. I think Anthony could give at least as much on defense and the boards as Wade.

He would automatically be their second best player and would probably be the leading scorer, best 3 pt shooter and second leading rebounder.

You could even bring Wade or Anthony off the bench or play them alternating minutes if you wanted to give them more looks. The heat's bench would be much better. I for one don't want to see this at all. It would be tough sledding for the rest of the NBA.

If Melo goes to Miami, Bosh better watch his back because I'm not sure what he brings that Anthony doesn't/can't do better.

Defense is about effort. I've never seen anything from his career that would indicate he can put that effort in. But maybe Lebron and Wade can get something out of him no one else can.

I think Anthony on the Rockets is a terrible fit.

If Miami loses to SA and LeBron does decide to opt out, he could goto Houston to form another Big 3. If MIA knows they'll lose LeBron, they could do a sign&trade:

LeBron for Asik, Lin, and Parsons.

Wade and Bosh have already indicated they want to stay in MIA. MIA would be losing the best player in the world, but they'd get something back and shore up their 3 biggest holes on their roster.

MIA could still contend with:
Asik
Bosh
Parsons
Wade
Lin

HOU would obviously contend with:
Howard
Jones
LeBron
Harden
Beverly

This trade would likely never happen (and may not even be possible), but one can dream..

I don't think Lebron is leaving Miami. As long as his Super-friends are hanging with him, he is making even more through additional business investments than he would as the big banana on another team (an article the other day noted this was worth $30M extra per year although I have no idea how they made that up).

Melo is good friends with all the Super-friends and I don't think it makes the Heat any worse than they currently are, which is a team in the Finals for the fourth year in a row. It allows Wade's minutes to be reduced and Spoelstra could balance his lineup through the year so you always have 2 of the 4 (Lebron/Bosh, Wade/Melo) on the floor at a time. It could save minutes on everyone, extend their careers, and they would all be fresher for a playoff run as the likely #1 seed in the East every year.

Heat still have to restructure some other contracts, but they could let Chalmers walk and move Cole into the starting PG role (he's better anyways). Then see if veteran role players want to come play for the vet minimum and get a ring.

The NBA is probably pissed that this is even being discussed because this is what they were trying to prevent. But in an age where everyone bashes players for chasing the money, I don't understand why anyone would be mad at great players willing to take less money to win a title.

If the Rockets trade for Melo, they need to keep Lin and Parsons and trade away Howard to get someone faster that plays less defense. Then see what DAntoni is up to.

I think this kind of thing is very bad for the the owners and especially the hardcore fans in most of the US. However, it is likely increases the NBA brand globablly and it may even get the casual fans to watch a bit more stateside as it is heavily marketed.

I personally have no issue with this move either and I agree it makes the heat much better. This is pretty much what the Spurs have done in order to keep Timmy, Parker and Manu together. The difference of course is the Spurs players were home grown and took less money to stay and were not built through collusion. To be honest the NBA has a long history of many of the best players being on the same team and the league's history is far from balanced. The Jordan, Magic, Bird, Thomas Era was the exception for the most part. It was pretty much the Lakers and Celtics show for a huge chunk of history.

Like you said Bayou, if nothing else Anthony provides depth for the heat. You could probably talk Haslem, Anderson, Allen and Lewis into league minimums and have basically the same squad that is in the finals with the addition of Anthony. Obviously that is a huge net gain.

If this happens, I hope a major free agent like Gasol decides he wants to win a ring and takes a very low salary to come to the Spurs and compete against these guys for the next year or two.

OKC, the Spurs as currenyly constructed and possibly someone like the rockets or mavs (with a huge FA addition) are realistically the only teams that could possibly compete. Even then the Heat would be the overwhelming favorites.

Here is the problem with what is happening with super-power teams like the Heat. They can take less money from the team they play for in their contract, but end up making more in endorsements simply because they are guaranteed an annual Finals appearance.

Think about the marketing advantage those players have simply because they get to A) play more games and B) play more prime time high ratings TV games.

If Bosh / Wade / Bron / Melo all take a $10 million pay cut but appear in the Finals every year for the next 4 years, they will probably gain $25-50 million in endorsements over that time simply because they will be marketing gold.

Have you seen any Bosh commercials?

Well, I was mainly speaking to Wade / Lebron / Melo, since those are the ones who will have to take the biggest pay cut to make it happen. By the time Bosh signs again, he will have by far the lowest market value of all those guys (I guess you could argue Wade might be down there with him, but you get my point).

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If the Rockets trade for Melo, they need to keep Lin and Parsons and trade away Howard to get someone faster that plays less defense. Then see what DAntoni is up to.

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I know your tongue was planted firmly in your cheek when you typed that, but the mere thought of that scenario unfolding made me shudder.

I have to think at least one (maybe two) of them is going to let the critics get in their head and go somewhere else so they won't be seen as taking the easy way out. Although I could see the argument being made that a title can't be own with only one star (ex. being Lebron all those years in Cleveland) so no matter where they go, they are going to need at least one side kick. If you are already have to team up with one other star, why shouldn't you get all the help you need if you and your friends can make it work.

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If the Rockets trade for Melo, they need to keep Lin and Parsons and trade away Howard to get someone faster that plays less defense. Then see what DAntoni is up to.

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I know your tongue was planted firmly in your cheek when you typed that, but the mere thought of that scenario unfolding made me shudder.

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Can you think of a worse defensive starting trio than Harden/Melo/Lin coached by either McHale or DAntoni?

Every game would be 120-110.

On a bad shooting night. They might get through a game without 150 passes.

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If the Rockets trade for Melo, they need to keep Lin and Parsons and trade away Howard to get someone faster that plays less defense. Then see what DAntoni is up to.

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I know your tongue was planted firmly in your cheek when you typed that, but the mere thought of that scenario unfolding made me shudder.

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Can you think of a worse defensive starting trio than Harden/Melo/Lin coached by either McHale or DAntoni?

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Maybe Dr.J, Magic and Barkley at their current ages...heh...but, yeah, that would be a total sieve on the court. As a Rockets fan, that'd be torture.

FWIW: Wade had $11mm in endorsements according to Forbes. Could not find a figure for Bosh. Carmelo was already at $8mm this year. Durant at $14mm and LeBron at $53mm.

If Melo resigns with Knicks, some will criticize because he is taking the max money and doesn't seem to care about winning.

If he goes to the Heat, he is criticized for being unable to win a title on his own.


He's a free agent, he should play where he wants to play.

How many minutes would he get from Pop.

Melo would be pretty useless in the Spurs offense. Not saying he couldn't help them, but they'd have to completely change their game with him in.

That said, Melo to SA will never happen in any lifetime.

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If Melo resigns with Knicks, some will criticize because he is taking the max money and doesn't seem to care about winning.

If he goes to the Heat, he is criticized for being unable to win a title on his own.

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I guess he should have tried something besides shooting over the last 10 years.


I'm not sure San Antonio would take Anthony if he were willing to play for free. Lebron James, on the other hand, would be brilliant in San Antonio... but he probably wouldn't go to San Antonio if they paid him a billion dollars.

As a Mavs fan, stay the hell away Melo. All he does is stop the movement of the ball with all his iso shots. Do not want.

If I'm LeBron, and I have the choice between the cadaver known as Dwyane Wade or Carmelo, I'm taking Carmelo. Bosh certainly is more important than Wade.

I'm trying to think what Wade's value will be next year, and I don't know who was comparable in last year's crew of free agents, and the salary cap has gone up, so that works in his favor.

Mayo and Monta got around $8 mil per year. I guess Wade would be around that, but would you give him 2 years?

[This message has been edited by Iowaggie (edited 6/12/2014 10:09p).]

I wouldn't give him anything. It's the NBA Finals, his team is getting embarrassed on defense, and he's dogging it consistently. He plays lazy defense and is constantly calling for other people to cover for his lapses and blaming them after his dumb turnovers. He sat out 30 games this year and only played 33 mpg when he did play, so you can't blame it on overuse, either. Still a skilled scorer, but either his legs or his heart are gone. That and I don't like him. He's a cheap shot artist and I don't want that around my team. And his face is fat.

Zach Randolph hates your last comment.