Carmelo Anthony Trade Rumors: Why The Dallas Mavericks Should Consider Melo

For the last couple weeks, there has been an awful lot of chatter surrounding Carmelo Anthony and the possibility of him leaving Denver.  Some of the teams that have been mentioned in these rumors include the New Jersey Nets, Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks, Orlando Magic, and Houston Rockets.

One team that has not been mentioned, but makes a lot of sense, is the Dallas Mavericks.  I find it hard to believe that Mark Cuban has not at least toyed with the notion of acquiring Melo.  He's an owner that has demonstrated repeatedly that he's willing to make moves and spend money to help his team be successful.

The Nuggets are looking for a lot in return for the face of their franchise.  Plus, they want to get rid of J.R. Smith as well.  These parameters have been difficult for any Melo suitors to satisfy.  I think the Mavericks have the pieces to do it (with the help of the New York Knicks).

Here's a scenario that makes a lot of sense to me:

Denver Acquires: Caron Butler, Rodrigue Beaubois, and a first-round draft pick from Dallas, and Eddy Curry from New York

New York Acquires: J.R. Smith from Denver and DeShawn Stevenson from Dallas

Dallas Acquires: Carmelo Anthony from Denver

Why it works for Denver:  It is very clear at this point that Carmelo is ready to move on.  He wants to go to a team that can compete for a title right away.  If you add him to Dallas's roster, they would instantly be considered a title contender.  The scoring combination of Anthony and Dirk Nowitzki would be completely unstoppable.

Denver has insisted on getting good, young talent back in any deal for Anthony. Beaubois has an immense amount of potential and can play both guard positions due to his quickness and scoring instincts.  He could very well be a superstar in a year or two. Plus, a first-round pick would translate to more young talent in the upcoming draft.

While Butler is no Carmelo, he is better than any other wing that other teams in the running can offer (with the possible exception of Houston's Kevin Martin). He would be a solid short-term replacement.  He can score and rebound, plays solid defense, and is very strong for his 6'7" frame.

Acquiring Curry makes sense just because he is on the last year of his horrible contract and that means 11.2 million dollars wiped off the books as soon as this season is over.

In fact, all three of the players Denver would get in this trade are in the last year of their contracts.  So, the Nuggets would have a lot of flexibility as they would begin rebuilding post-Melo.

Why it works for New York: Smith may be a headache for Mike D'Antoni and New York's management, but to be able to swap him for Curry is a no-brainer.  

The Knicks are pretty much set at point guard, small forward, power forward, and center.  Who will start at shooting guard is still up in the air.  Smith could fill that hole and he would fit in very well in D'Antoni's uptempo system.

A lineup of Raymond Felton, Smith, Danilo Gallinari, Amare Stoudemire, and Anthony Randolph would be extremely difficult to defend.

Why it works for Dallas: Not much of a need for explanation here.  Dallas would be giving up a lot, but would certainly get their money's worth in Anthony.

Coaches and management alike are very high on  Beaubois.  Butler is a versatile wing player who should perform better this season after having a bit of an off year in 2009-10.  Draft picks are always tough to give up, and DeShawn Stevenson is just sort of a throw-in to make salaries match.

Would it be worth it for Dallas to give all that up for Anthony?  Of course it would.  Melo would be the best player the Mavericks could place alongside Dirk Nowitzki since Steve Nash left for Phoenix.  He would also be the best scorer Nowitzki's ever played with. Anthony would relieve a lot of the pressure on Nowitzki to carry Dallas on an almost nightly basis.

The only teams in the NBA that could possibly slow down this scoring duo would be the Los Angeles Lakers and the Miami Heat.  Both players possess fantastic mid-range games and Anthony can get to the rim with ease against most defenders.

Imagine the size and ability of a lineup that read:

PG	Jason Kidd	6'4"
SG	Jason Terry	6'2"
SF	Carmelo Anthony	6'8"
PF	Dirk Nowitzki	7'
C	Brendan Haywood	7'

Like I said before, this deal would instantly move Dallas into the ranks of legitimate title contenders.  Mark Cuban is an aggressive owner so I think he has at least thought about who he could offer the Nuggets for their superstar forward.

The deal I've laid out makes a lot of sense for all three teams involved.  Hopefully, by some miracle, Donnie Nelson, Donnie Walsh, and Masai Ujiri all happen upon this article.