Carmelo Anthony Erases Memories with Buzzer-Beater over Chicago Bulls

I couldn't agree more with Holly when she writes this of Carmelo Anthony's buzzer-beatings of the Bulls on Sunday: 

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The difference a game-winning shot or 40-point performance can make is incredible. A few weeks ago, Anthony returned from the injury list to a mix of boos and cheers from fans who were unsure how they felt about his me-first brand of basketball and propensity for having the ball in his hands.

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A moment like that can feel like a paradigm-shifter, an event that decides a bigger question. Or, to quote a tweeting Bill Simmons:

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BS: Rose misses 2 FT's, Carmelo for 3 to tie... BANG!!!! What are Wilson Chandler and Danilo Gallinari doing right now???????

— Grantland Live (@GrantlandLive) April 8, 2012"

I might retort, "Not costing Denver $85 million for disappointing production," but point taken. It was certainly a brilliant game for the much-maligned Melo. And the Knicks are rolling post-D-Antoni, especially on defense, where Anthony might actually be helping. He's getting a lot of minutes at the power forward position, and opponents are scrambling to account for the mismatch. 

That's the story in my opinion. It's about how the Knicks are surging forth—despite losing Jeremy Lin and Amare Stoudemire—in a manner that may or may not be sustainable. It's not about how Carmelo Anthony's clutch closerness in an OT home win somehow validates a trade that caused the Knicks to part with young talent and eventually burn an amnesty. Time will decide whether that was the right choice, and the current long view has frankly not been so kind to Dolan here.

The seventh or eighth seed was not a preseason goal, and New York has less cap room than a competitive swimmer. But here we are, in another wild NYC mood swing, declaring that what we just witnessed presages a new era. 

"But superstars make big plays and Anthony showed again that he is a big time superstar," says SI's Chris Mannix, writing about how this display was evidence of superstardom.

And here's Stephen A. Smith gabbing about on ESPN on how this illustrates a justification for the trade: 

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When you saw what Melo did...ultimately closing the deal in personified and exemplifies why the New York Knicks felt it so urgently, it was so urgent rather, to get him to New York city. It’s one thing to have Amare Stoudemire, it’s another thing entirely to have a CLOSER paired with him. Any doubts that Carmelo Anthony is capable of doing that? Evidently, folks didn’t know history because it just repeats itself over and over again with this guy.

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I respectfully disagree as someone who has seen Monta Ellis and Jamal Crawford have nights to remember. A single game can be illustrative of superstardom, but that distinction is proven over time.

Moreover, we've already had this Melo moment, back in the first round of last year's playoffs. Anthony scored 42 points in a Game 2 loss against the Celtics and the widespread reaction was one of cheering the moment for its grand, decisive meaning. From Will Leitch at New York Magazine: 

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The Knicks' roster, with Amar'e Stoudemire and Chauncey Billups hurt, was so depleted that those four men were required to play the vital minutes in the most important Knicks game in 10 years, and that is entirely because of the trade for the fifth man on the floor. And you know what? Watching him, in a transcendent performance that will be remembered far longer than this loss will, you can't argue that it wasn't still worth it.

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The Knicks went on to get swept, as Anthony shot 37.5 percent in the series. Perhaps Carmelo is a superstar (I disagree), but even if he isn't, the sheer volume of his shots dictates that these types of games will occur.

That they do is no more proof of superstardom than it is when Monta Ellis catches fire. But for some reason, Melo's moments cause people to forget whatever preceded them. To quote Stephen A. Smith: "Evidently, folks didn’t know history because it just repeats itself over and over again with this guy."