Yeah, having Carmelo's offense would have helped us. We lost because we scored less points. Offense is used to score points. We missed 27 straight 3 pointers, and nobody on our team could score any other way. Who exactly did Trevor Ariza or PJ Tucker lock down? Was it Kevin Durant who had 34 points on 11-21 shooting? Was it Steph Curry who had 27 points on 10-22 shooting? Was it Klay Thompson who had 19 points on 8-13 shooting?
Did you see that all three games we won in that series we won by defense. By pointing to how each of those GS players score to prove that Ariza's and Tucker's defense was not important shows that you don't understand how we play defense. It's a high intensity switch everything defense. That means that if just one of the five guys on the floor is slacking, it breaks down. You absolutely can't afford to have a guy who thinks he is there just to score. Also, people keep saying that the 0-27 shooting lost the game as if that was a normal shooting night for Ariza and company, and as if Carmelo has never had a bad shooting night. It was a perfect storm when everyone of our players couldn't hit. How do you know if we had Melo he wouldn't be among those who couldn't hit? Did you know that Melo's career playoffs 3pt average was .308 and Ariza's was .367?
Trust me, I’m the first one to recognize the knock on Melo defensively as that hasn’t been his calling his entire career. This could be a biased opinion, but I don’t think it’s as bad as a majority of us are labeling it. I’ve seen plenty highlight defensive plays from him so that tells me it’s a matter of will vs. skill. Harden locked in on the defensive end when CP3 came in holding him accountable. What’s to say that won’t have the same effect on Melo? I underestimated the Bzdelic hire, but he has shown he’s capable of scheming that dominant offensive team to a top 10 defense.
Hey donkey punch are you in my star wars galaxy of heroes guild, because someone on there has the exact screen name?
Okc is definitely not keeping him. They are the same franchise with different players. They are not going to pay the tax or whatever it takes to win.
I need Htown Melo to come in here and drop some random stats or advanced analytics that refute this. I imagine it’s something like “Melo’s percentage was brought down by having to take contested bailout shots as the #1 option most his career while Ariza benefited from wide open looks playing off other stars (pulls out heat maps)”. [As an aside, that dude is becoming one of my favorite posters here.]
If OKC keeps Melo it would have 150m in taxes. The largest in NBA history.This is the same team that didn't want to pay Harden when he was there.100% he is leaving. Case closed.
Ever hear the expression too many chefs spoil the soup? Melo is walking into a system. A machine that was ranked first in the NBA and I truly believe a hamstring injury and overhausted players away from a championship. It isn't like last year where Melo was going to OKC with Donovan who has no idea what to do with an offence besides give the ball to westbrook and stand back. If Melo wants to take part, he needs to be Bosh of the Heat or Love in Cleveland and truly defer all decisions to Harden, Paul and D'antoni. Houston already had to deal with a player who "didn't plan on taking over and just wanted to take part" in Dwight Howard. So yes, if Melo is asked to shoot and spread the floor that is what he needs to do. If he is asked to come off the bench, then he needs to keep his mouth shut and say whatever is best for the team. D'antoni is an offensive mastermind. He will find a way to incorporate Melo. I FIRMLY BELIEVE THAT! This team does not need him to dictate. If he is going to come here and dictate his minutes, position he plays, whether he starts or not, or even if he is to finish games, I would much rather see Morey find a diamond in the rough again. Houston Does NOT NEED Melo. Melo needs us, if he wants to win and not go down as another sad case in the NBA. Boston isn't going to trade their budding stars for him. The Lakers haven't really expressed a dire need in him. He can possibly go to Golden State, where he can sit on their bench like Mcgrady did on the Spurs. D'antoni and the Houston coaching staff will figure out what is best for the team. Whatever is best for the team is what should make Melo happy. If the man wants to wear Rockets red, he can keep his opinions to himself. He needs to be another Capella who's success is definitely a direct result of his willingness to comply with whatever Harden, Paul, and the coaching staff asks. Those three will make sure he shines and looks respectable again, unlike the mess in OKC and their staff. No one is implying that Melo is a slave, but his fans and followers need to understand that Melo is not someone that they are building their offence around or need him to truly lead. I guarantee OKC fans aren't losing sleep over the Loss of Melo. I live in NYC and surrounded by Knicks fans and they aren't losing sleep with the loss of Melo. He is what he is and can still be a very good cog to a machine and get his numbers but he needs accept his role. I've worked in Kitchens in NYC for a while now. When Chef says do something the only thing that needs to be said is "oui chef" or find a new place to work. No one is considered a "slave" we just do what must be done in order for service to run smoothly. One Chef, possibly a sous or two who are on the exact same page as the Chef and the cooks who do exactly what is told. None are slaves
You don't understand basketball period. Your last sentence proves it all. And the fact that you guys are b****ing about one of the best pure scorers coming to our team for dirt cheap says it all. Look at the degree of difficulty between the shots Carmelo takes, and the shots Ariza takes. Trevor Ariza cannot shoot the ball unless he's wide open. He cannot create his own offense. He can only stand on the corners and wait for an open 3. Or shoot a 3 coming off of a break. Have you ever seen Trevor Ariza break his man down dribbling the ball, and shooting over a defender? Meanwhile Carmelo creates his own offense. People don't leave him open. That .308 average is because Carmelo takes more difficulty shots, and unlike Ariza, he can score over people, without getting assisted on the shot. People scheme against Carmelo offensively, nobody cares about Ariza on the offense end, because he can't do anything/ Our defense is important, but Ariza, nor Tucker, nor anybody in the NBA can individually stop Kevin Durant or Steph Curry from scoring..that's just the facts of the matter. Kevin Durant was unstoppable. We lost because our offense is predictable. If three's aren't falling, we cannot score any other way. We can't depend on CP3 always being healthy, so If James Harden is off, we're f*cked. That's where Carmelo comes in.
Some time this week in my opinion. Only one team can make a trade and thats Sacramento so we'll see what happens
I said he's coming to take part not take over and you wrote all of this. My point is he aint just gonna sit in the corner, MDA will utilize him better than that.
Melo's shot selection is the reason his efficiency has been poor at times. I wouldn't even use bailout shots as a reason, just the pull up 3s and turn around jumpers over double teams were far too many. Ariza gets his shots off the catch more often that not so yeah you kinda see the difference.
