Carmelo Anthony?

[spectre]

uhm, I beg to differ. Melo is a LB man, he is any Coach's man. The kid is a STUD! And he can play the 2 or 3, but not a 4.

Melo doesn't play defense, so I wonder if he really would be a LB man.

Our wing D would flat out suck. Melo and Swish...who guards the Artests, the JJs, Kobe? Can you imagine what the Nets with VC & Carter would do to us?

I do like Melo though. If we had a defensive wing like Mayo instead of Swish I'd be all over going after him.

BTW, I haven't read anything official, but I was under the impression Denver was looking for cap relief...something Crash + Hammer wouldn't give them.

[ohara831]

It appears that one thing Denver wants badly is a quality PG. They are talking of going after Lawson from UNC in the Draft. Therefore, if we gave them Ray and Crash, but kept our pick, that would enable us to grab a good PG with the #8, but it does not give us a good chance to get a PF with our 2nd rounder, assuming we do have one. I just dont think we can get it done to satisfy Denver unless they just fawned over Crash and they feel they can get a really quality PG with our #8 and dont want Ray but would take Carroll.

Damn, I'm getting Melo envy. It's late, I'm going to bed.

[TheBeagle]

your right ohara...plus we need a team leader that can take us to the playoffs here. Right now we dont have that, although Jrich is close i think.

Well, I don't watch many non-Bobcats NBA games outside of some playoff games, but I don't think Carmelo is half the team leader JRich is....not even in the same area code. Anytime something goes wrong, this kid just self-destructs, pouts, and whines...all things which are anathema to being a team leader. I honestly have no use for the guy, what with his Baltimore gang ties, horrific defense, and reasons listed above.

Admittedly, being a GW homer, any trade with his name mentioned will bring instant skepticism; still, I would be disappointed if we pursued Carmelo even if Crash wasn't involved. I don't see how he solves any of our needs. If we're going to put together a package trade, let's get us a solid 4 that has a smooth offensive game, can defend his position and rebound. Or trade for cap space and get friggin Elton Brand, who serves much much more of a need.

Overall, good thread for the idea exchange and entertainment during the post-LB-hirng and pre-draft lull that's going on.

[EvetsMorrison15]

Ammofan, if Morrison backs up Carmelo then he'll average 2 minutes per game.

Plus Morrison is a better defender.

p.s. Morrison has no defense.

[EvetsMorrison15]

ha ha ha just kidding.

Morrison is a good defender.

Carmelo still sucks.

[ohara831]

Beagle:

Dont forget, Melo has an NCAA Title. That seems to carry a lot of weight in our front office regarding players they like - May, Felton, Okafor.

Melo is a player who is a game changer. He's young, only 23 or 24. We have some high character people on this team, and that will help Melo. I am sure he's hearing the talk, so he's going to want to prove to people that he's not a "bad person". Finally, his game is different from Crash's, which will complement J-Rich, and most assuredly open up the floor for J-Rich even more.

All in all, if we found a way to do it without having to give up both Crash AND Felton, I'd do it easily. Give them Carroll or May or Ammo. Giving them Crash AND Ray or Crash AND a S&T Okafor would be too much. Melo and the 20th pick just would not solve our problems in that case. But, a lineup of say:
Felton, J-Rich, Melo, Love/McGee and Okafor would be a terrific starting 5. A bench with Narz, May, Ammo, Dudley, Hollins, Davidson and our Draft picks would be solid. It takes us into the Playoffs easily and more than 1 round.

We know Larry Brown wants to put his stamp on the team. He said he and MJ discussed the team, it's makeup and what things they wanted to do to make it better PRIOR to his even agreeing to be our Coach. He has ideas - I dont expect him to sit and do nothing. He wants to create a team with HIS identity and shaking things up and bringing a buzz of excitement is exactly what we could use. Melo coming East would be big news, get us quite a bit of talk in the NBA and get us on highlights a bit more on ESPN increasing exposure and people buying Melo Bobcat jerseys.

All totaled, if it can be done, it should be done. I see a small amount of risk, but a very large reward. Be mellow with Melo!

[Dead_Real]

At the end of the day I don't see them moving Melo A.I or George Karl will be gone before him IMO if they make any moves this offseason.

[mrtarheel]

I broke this thread in imploding teams about a week a go and now it seems to be coming to light. Start with Wallace and picks for Melo outright. If that doesn't work see what players they want and see if you could get Diawara back in the trade so he could back up at sg or sf which is where they probably would want one of our players. They don't need pf or c because they are loaded with those. I wouldn't give up felts because with us loosing picks we wouldn't be able to pick up a good one.

[MattD]

its not even worth thinking about. Denver would trade out everyone on their roster before melo.

[Slam]

I don't think that Melo gives us what we need.

If we are going to trade Crash, I'd rather move him for an off guard with high IQ who can help move the ball and get everyone involved and move Swish to the 3.