As Carmelo Anthony leans toward leaving New York, Chicago and Houston emerge as frontrunners

"The most likely destination remains the Chicago Bulls..."

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the bulls could build a hologram of drose and present it to carmelo. he'd probably fall for it.

 

But he has the option to go to a team that would be considered at least top 3 in the NBA and very possibly top 1. With Chicago there is a big "IF" - and with Chicago he'd have to leave money on the table and if all is going according to plan that team would not necessarily be better than the HOU team with him.

I don't think any team has a better starting lineup than:

Beverly
Harden
Parsons
Melo
Howard

And having TJones and Canaan off the bench any maybe some veteran FA who is ring hunting would make this a complete team. I am not being a homer and I know that teams like this have a potential to fail. Are there enough balls to go around? Will Melo, Harden and possibly Parsons be enough on defense? Can McHale improve as a coach?

But on paper you have 3 top 10 players in the league that each should have at least 3 very good years left. No other team can match that.

 

I think Bulls with Melo has much better chance to do that than Rockets with Melo.

 

Never know, because if someone told me the rockets would have the same playoff success as 12-13 rockets after adding Howard at the rockets parade I would've thought they were crazy, especially if they said it was to the blazers

 

TJones and Canaan would most certainly have to be traded to dump Lin's contract. The bench would be absolutely depleted.

Rose
Butler/Afflalo
Melo
Gibson
Noah

This starting 5 would absolutely be top 3. Even without Rose, it is still top 5 and with a much easier road to the finals, Melo's chances at a chip are greater in Chicago.

I want Melo to come to the Rockets just as much as the next Rox fan, but wishful thinking isn't going to get it done.

 

That's not the point.

In the East a .500 record gets you in the play offs. In the West 48 wins got Phoenix a fishing trip.

8/10 top teams are in the West. You have the Heat and Pacers in the East.

Which do YOU think is better for your endorsers and legacy? Going DEEP into the play offs every year playing the likes of the Wizards and Knicks? Or potentially being eliminated in the 1st or 2nd round by teams like Memphis, OKC, the Spurs, Clippers, GSW and Dallas?

The East gives a team TONS of margin for error. You can rest guys, play fewer minutes, have guys injured and STILL back into the play offs. The Knicks had one of the worst records in the NBA well past the ASG and STILL almost backed into the play offs.

Let's put it this way... if you want to be the Champion of the world as a boxer, which gives you a better chance? Fight the #1, #3 and #4 contenders in a row before the defending champ? Or fight Buster Douglas 3x and then fight the defending champ?

The whole point is you need to get a title fight to even HAVE a chance. Even Buster Douglas knocked out Tyson because it was his night. However, if he never has that fight he never wins a title.

Anything can happen on the way to the Finals, just as anything can happen once you get to the finals. Injuries, cold/hot shooting, bad calls, etc, etc.

So, how much better a team do you think Melo + Houston is than Melo + Chicago?

Good enough that you'd give Houston a better chance of getting through 3 rounds of the West to the Finals than Chicago getting to the NBA Finals? Good enough that it's enough to offset the chances of Chicago pulling off an upset in the Finals when you have Coach Thibodeau behind the bench vs having Kevin McHale behind the bench?

If ALL Melo cares about is title shots, then he should stay in the East and either play for Chicago or Miami. If Melo wants to be the BEST, he should go to Houston.

 

The problem is you will lost at least butler or Gibson and probably both to get Melo. If they can keep both and rose we're healthy then yes they would be very formidable. I can't see how they get there yet without losing Gibson.

 

LOL. The Warriors traded $25 million in complete dead weight via future picks, but the Rockets wouldn't be able to trade $8.3 million (or $15 million, depending on your lens) of a productive player with picks attached?

No way to get Carmelo, keep Gibson and add Afflalo. Sorry.

Much easier road to the Finals? Unless Melo's goal is to become this generation's Jim Kelly or Thurman Thomas, that probably doesn't mean much.

 

This is very good summary of east versus west and why even though Houston would probably have the better team with Melo than Chicago with Melo, he still might want the bulls to stay east and have a more glamorous city (sorry I love houston more but players do see Chicago as more glamorous).

However, 1 point in our favor - Lebron is in the east. It is VERY difficult to get to the finals from the east since Lebron will always be in the way (unless he signs with us ha!). If he stays in Miami they will almost always be favored to come out of the east. So it might be not too much worse in the west, if your goal is to get to the finals.

 

Just to make this trade happen. Are you willing to trade Asik+Lin and Jones for Melo? Well folks that is the latest possibility to make this trade happen!

 

unless Melo joins the Heat...

 

1. Don't know how to add tweets on here, but Simmons tweeted earlier today that Rose, Afflalo, Butler, Gibson, Melo and Noah was "very doable."

2. You're assuming Melo loses in the finals. Once you're in, you always have a shot. I'd rather be in a position where I'm only at real risk of losing once vs 4 times.

3. The biggest knock on Love is that he's never made it to the playoffs. The biggest knock on CP3 is that he's never made it to the WCF. So if I'm Melo and I can cakewalk into the Finals every season for the next 3 years, I do it.

 

It's a good summary, but he admits that the Finals strategy in the Chicago scenario would essentially be praying for a Thibodeau-led upset. That's not exactly an optimal strategy to beating one of the big boys (SA, OKC, etc.) in a best-of-7 series. The preferred strategy would seem to be building an elite enough roster to challenge them.

To me, this is very similar to the pursuit of Dwight a year ago. He made it pretty clear that his decision was about giving him the best shot to win a title, yet people kept trying to speak for him based on priorities that he never said. The people around Carmelo have made it very clear that his decision will be based around giving him the best shot to win a championship, and as with Dwight, I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt and taking those words at face value. The "glamour" status of the city, and whether or not he can feel 100% secured in a ECF/WCF berth in a given year, are secondary factors.

 

And many people that are much more versed in the salary cap than Simmons, including our own BimaThug, have explained why it is NOT very doable. Bill Simmons says a lot of things.

I'd rather have the better team around me.

The knock is the same on all 3 players: they haven't won titles. That's all that matters. If I'm Melo, I'm going where I have the best roster to do that.

 

It would be Canaan and DMo.

 

Utah was tanking for a high pick in one of the best draft classes ever. Sixers were doing the same thing along with Boston. Nobody is going to be doing us any favors without a deep draft and lots of motivation from us.

DET: new coach/gm
CLE: new coach
UTA: new coach
PHI: 2nd season coach/gm
CHA: made playoffs/ looking to improve
MIL: new owner
MIN: possible rebuild/salary dump mode
SAC: hungry owner/trying to make a splash
BOS: second year coach.

 

Let's not forget that while the Heat are going to be a prime obstacle, Wade is clearly on the decline. Do you see Wade turning things around with his knee history? The Heat is currently the big 2.5, not the big 3. And that means that Chicago doesn't need to be nearly as good to get to the Finals.

Let's also not forget that if Chicago is going deep into the Play Offs every year (ECF or Finals), then they're going to have a MUCH easier time attracting key veterans to fill out their bench for a title run for the MLE and minimum.

Chicago+Melo vs Lebron+declining Wade isn't nearly as much of a mismatch as in year's past. And it's not like the Heat have a top tier Head Coach in Spoelstra to gloss over the rough patches against Thibodeau.

Meanwhile, if Melo is in the West he's facing multiple top tier coaches in Pops, Carlisle and Doc Rivers every year with McHale behind him.

It's not an accident that Melo has been reported to "want" to play for Thibodeau...

 

To me if you strike out on Lebron and Melo you still move Asik and Lin, sign parsons, and then go get Lowry and Millsap.

Lowry/Bev
Harden/Daniels
Parsons/Covington
Millsap/TJones
Dwight/?

That lineup gives you better shooting (spreads the floor), better D, and rebounding.

 

If D Rose is not healthy none of it really matters. That won't come true until we actually see Rose on the floor 100 percent. Melo hasn't even been visited by all the teams he is interested in so until that happens all these Chicago is the team reports are pure BS.