Denver Nuggets: The Pros and Cons of Trading Carmelo Anthony

After what looked like a decent season, George Karl and Nuggets fans must be disappointed with their team's short playoff series, which ended in a Lakers sweep. 

They had Marcus Camby, the 2007 Defensive Player of the Year, and Allen Iverson and Carmelo Anthony, the third and fourth leading scorers in the league, with 26.4 ppg and 25.7 ppg, respectively.  And they were still drastically outplayed.  What could be the problem?

Many people have come to believe that Anthony is the main reason for the Nugget's playoffs woes.  The 23-year-old two-time All-Star, who immediately emerged as a star after he was drafted out of Syracuse, seems to be the most likely person to go when talk of rebuilding the team comes up. 

Here are the pros and cons of getting rid of Anthony:

Pros

• Can exchange for a player who can actually play defense and can assume the role as a leader (A.I. is not someone I would consider a leader).
• Will be done with the past and future legal problems Anthony had/is going to run into not to.
• Will be rid of his immaturity (unfortunately, they will still have J.R. Smith around).

Cons

• Is only 23; He has plenty of time to improve on his game as well as his attitude.
• Who will make up for his loss?  He contributed nearly 1/4 of the Nuggets' scoring.
• What will the Nuggets' style be after he is gone?  He might have been solely offensive-minded, but that is what seems to be Karl's game plan judging by the rest of his team.

In my opinion, I think trading Anthony is absolutely ridiculous.  The whole trading Marcus Camby situation I can understand.  Despite his Defensive Player of the Year award, Camby cannot play defense at all.  Their fast style leads to more possessions in the game, which leads to a lot more statistical build-up.  Plus, he is not exactly a good offensive player either. 

Anthony is a phenomenal player, who I believe will develop into one of the greatest.  Look for him and LeBron James to battle it out for MVP in a couple of years.

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