[Kellerman] Rockets just got worse, not better, with the addition of Carmelo Anthony

Haven't had a good Kellerman or Carmelo thread in awhile.

Spoiler

Are the Rockets close to the Warriors now?

Max: The Rockets? Now? As though they just got better? I thought they would beat Golden State in the playoffs last year. I think the evidence proves my thinking was correct. They didn't have Chris Paul, their emotional leader & 2nd best player. They had a historically awful shooting night and were still within single digits of the Warriors. If Chris Paul plays, they win that game.

At any rate, that was a Game 7. I thought they were the best team in basketball last year. So they add Carmelo & you think well, they've gotten even better right? First of all, there's the argument that the Thunder got better because it's addition by subtraction. Secondly, how does this make the Rockets better? Carmelo is replacing at the forward position two good defenders. And by the way, the key to the Rockets success, yes of course they could shoot, Carmelo can shoot although not great as a spot up shooter as we saw last year. They were sneaky good defensively. The Rockets were a good defensive team. Carmelo is a terrible defensive player at this stage in his career. The Rockets just got worse, not better and they didn't quite get over the hump last year so they're actually moving backwards.

How did it work out last time Carmelo was with D'Antoni? How did it work out last time Carmelo went to a team where it looked like his addition could help them challenge the Warriors? It didn't work out too well, did it? The modern NBA has changed & left him behind.

SAS: First of all, stop your nonsense. 10 years ago when Carmelo Anthony was playing with D'Antoni, you didn't have any facial hair and my hairline was 3 feet forward. Just stop it. Things change over the last decade. That's number one.

Number two, are you really gonna sit up here and say Carmelo makes no difference whatsoever? I'm willing to concede they're clearly not better defensively. They're taking a step back defensively. No one will stop the Warriors any damn way. Trevor Ariza, Mr. 0-12 in Game 7, 0-9 from 3pt range, let's not forget that. I like Trevor Ariza. Very happy he got his $15M over one year from Phoenix. Kobe loves him as well. A lot of people that play with him love him. Wizards never should have lost him years ago. I get all of that but damn it, let's pump the brakes. Luc Mbah a MOUTE?! REALLY? Game 7, last I checked, he didn't play. DNP. Guess what? He wasn't going to be a factor. Why? If you're D'Antoni, you need offense.

I'm so sick & tired of people disrespecting my man Carmelo Anthony. Is he what he used to be? No. Does he need to be in better shape? Yes. Have we forgotten there's an adjustment that comes with learning how to play with Westbrook on the fly & adding Paul George into that mix as well?

This man is best friends with Chris Paul. He's the prototypical point guard, one of the greatest of this generation, future Hall of Famer, this brother is best friends with him, they got chemistry, they practice with each other, they hang together, they're tight with one another which is why Melo chose Houston over LeBron/LA. Not to say LA was going to go after him but don't tell me LA would not have wanted Melo but wanted Beasley and Stephenson and Rondo. Let's pump the breaks.

He's a career 24PPG scorer. Melo has never, the last time he has played with a prototypical point guard, not superstar athletic point guard in Westbrook, a point guard, Jason Kidd was in New York. Knicks won the division, won 54 games, Woodson was the coach. I'm not sleeping on Melo in a Rockets uniform. I think they'll be more formidable offensively and to me, that makes them just as much a threat now as they were last season.

Max: At a certain point, you're gonna have to accept the evidence. You bring up his career scoring. Pure scoring average is not the most relevant offensive statistic. What does his career have to do with this? We're talking this dude right now. What can this guy do?

This is the same posture you adopted toward the Thunder when they picked up Carmelo. How did that work out? That was last year. Now he's another year older. He was tortured this year in the PnR, torched on defense. Teams looked for him to exploit him because he's just about the worst defender in this league at his position.

His offense is not what it used to be. He didn't get along with the coach when they were last together. It's not that he wasn't once a great player. He was never gonna be good defensively but his offense was so great at a certain point in his career that he was a great player at his best. His best was a long time ago. His numbers, all the percentages underneath, have been in decline for 4 consecutive seasons.

SAS: If you're gonna bring up facts, bring up all of them baby. Let's discount the Knicks. Can we stop that please? Thank God Steve Mills & Scott Perry are there, along with David Fizdale. There's a semblance of hope. God knows there wasn't before they took over last year. Don't do that to Carmelo Anthony.

You get to OKC, you get there right before the season begins. It's an adjustment learning to play with Westbrook & George. This ain't tennis, golf, boxing, MMA. It's a team. If you got teammates like CP3, Harden on the court with you, ...Harden the scorer is one thing. Ever see him play point? When he plays point & decides to distribute the basketball, this brother is special at that as well.

I'm not sleeping on Melo. Of course it's a down year. We ain't getting into his business but clearly last year there were some distractions, some personal things going on. Melo had a rough year all the way around. I think this year will be considerably better. He's in a more comfortable environment more suitable for his skill set. Not saying he'll be the all-star he was but he won't be what he was last year. I think we're sleeping on this brother a little bit, I really do.

Max: I will concede this. If you hear SAS kids say "I'm not gonna get in his business but he had a tough year", you can read between the lines. I take that seriously. I'm willing to believe that. I've heard some things too that suggest he had a rough year because of issues everyone is maybe not aware of and maybe that will get better this year. Maybe it won't.

SAS: It is better.

Max: Two, I agree that he still has better offensive value than he showed last year and if anyone can bring it out of him, it's Chris Paul. What I'm saying is the guy's minutes he's taking is an excellent defender. You know why Kobe likes Ariza? He's a tough defender. That guy is gone. The additional value on offense Carmelo is likely to give you is not likely to offset the defensive liability he is so if anything, the Rockets in my view just got worse.

SAS: They got worse defensively, better offensively. As a result, it leaves them in the same position as far as I'm concerned.