Carmelo Anthony: New York Knicks Trade Not Bust Despite Denver Nuggets Success

Carmelo Anthony and the New York Knicks are a mere 7-10 since the superstar came home, while the Denver Nuggets boast an 11-4 record since the blockbuster deal.

Despite the Knicks' recent struggles though, the Anthony trade cannot yet be deemed a bust.

As one of the biggest Danilo Gallinari advocates out there, I am not, nor should anyone else be, ready to call this deal a bust.

The Nuggets have played well since the Anthony trade and had a very impressive victory over the San Antonio Spurs Wednesday night, leaving Knicks fans and critics alike groaning.

Denver is clearly a team to be reckoned with and is capable of doing incredible things, but the Nuggets cannot be named the clear winners of the Anthony deal.

Although the Nuggets relinquished two terrific players in Anthony and Chauncey Billups, they did not blow up their rotation the way that the Knicks did in the trade.  Denver had the luxury of adding players to a rotation that was still intact.

The Knicks, on the other hand, blew up their roster to obtain Anthony.  New York was not simply adding players to its rotation; rather it was left with the task of having to fill major voids left by the trade.

We cannot pretend that Anthony and Billups were not substantial losses for the Nuggets, but the trade left them equipped to easily fill the gaps.

Ty Lawson was able to step up and take on Billups' starting role with Raymond Felton as his backup.  It came as a surprising decision to many, but Lawson is more familiar with the offense than Felton is, which made this an easy decision for coach George Karl.

Anthony left a major hole to fill at the small forward position, but between Gallinari, Wilson Chandler and J.R. Smith, the hole has been filled rather easily.  In fact, along with Arron Afflalo, these four players have formed quite a rotation at the 2 and 3 positions.

Furthermore, Denver's 4 and 5 positions were left untouched.  Kenyon Martin, Nene, Chris Andersen and Al Harrington continue to hold down the low post quite nicely for the Nuggets.

Clearly the transition for the Nuggets has been more than smooth.  With most of their core still intact, the Nuggets have been able to incorporate the new acquisitions into their system with ease.

New York, on the other hand, is a different story.

While Denver was left with a point guard who had extensive knowledge about the offensive system and an incoming backup that was of starting caliber, the Knicks had no such luxury.

New York was forced to throw Billups in to run the offense with very little knowledge about coach Mike D'Antoni's system.  It takes a lot of time and practice to learn an entire system, but the Knicks did not have the luxury of waiting.

Furthermore, the Knicks did not have the advantage of receiving an incoming backup of Felton's caliber.  It must be noted, though, that this is proving to be a minor issue with the emergence of Toney Douglas as a capable backup, but it is still a factor.

Aside from the point guard issues, the Knicks were left even thinner in the frontcourt than they were before the trade, which is saying something. 

Many believe Timofey Mozgov was an irrelevant loss to New York, but the fact is that he gave the team some height in the low post.  Yes, he is still learning the game, but the Knicks welcomed his 7'1" presence whenever he was on the floor.

Additionally, Mozgov is young and durable, and his absence forced more minutes upon Ronny Turiaf, an energetic, yet very injury-prone center.  You thought Amar'e Stoudemire was taking too much of a nightly beating before?  Well, he is even more overworked now. 

The addition of Jared Jeffries has helped alleviate this pressure somewhat, but there are still times when the 6'9" Shawne Williams is the tallest man on the floor for New York.

And then there are the 2 and 3 positions.  Anthony is quite an upgrade at the 3, and Landry Fields is spectacular at the 2, but the Knicks no longer have the instant scoring off the bench from Wilson Chandler.

New York was left with Shawne Williams and Bill Walker to take over as the prime role players, and while Williams has been a pleasant surprise this season, he is no Chandler.

This is not to make excuses for the Knicks.  The lack of defensive effort is embarrassing as of late, more so than usual.  However, New York had and still has more adjustments to make than Denver following the Anthony trade.

The Knicks blew up their roster to get Anthony, and while Gallinari and Chandler are great players, Denver's success is not a direct result of either of them.  At 15.7 and 13.9 points per game, Gallo and Chandler are actually putting up less impressive numbers with Denver.

And this is by no means an insult.  Their numbers have declined because their roles have changed.  They are not leaned on as much with the Nuggets as they were with the Knicks.

Both Gallo and Chandler have been great additions for the Nuggets, but there is a difference between being an addition and having to assume a franchise player role.  The new Nuggets have the luxury of not needing to be one of the team's franchise players right away.

This is why the Anthony trade cannot be deemed a bust yet.  The Knicks' situation requires more of a transition period than the Nuggets'.

So while watching the Nuggets' recent success has been slightly painful for Knicks fans, remember that we all asked for this.

Many, including myself, may not have been happy with whom we had to give up, but we all coveted Anthony in one way or another.

And we must be patient.  New York's recent struggles may be tough to swallow, but these things do not happen overnight. 

This trade was not about instant gratification, but about trying to put the Knicks in place to be a heartbeat away from title contention next season.

Just look at the Miami Heat.  LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh are still learning how to play together.

Given the circumstances, it is impossible to call the Anthony trade a bust yet.

Is it guaranteed to be a complete success?

Absolutely not.

But for now, any speculation on the subject is unwarranted.

After all, sometimes things have to get worse for them to get better.

Anthony and the Knicks are no exception.