Carmelo Anthony Trade Rumors: Could Nets Contend Now in 15-Player Deal?
Carmelo Anthony trade rumors are heating up once again and this time it's a three-team trade with New Jersey, Denver and Detroit.
The current deal in place would send Anthony, Chauncey Billups and Rip Hamilton to New Jersey while Derrick Favors, Devin Harris and Anthony Morrow head to Denver along with Quinton Ross, Ben Uzoh and Stephen Graham; not to mention two first round picks.
Detroit would get Johan Petro and Troy Murphy with a draft pick, a first or second rounder.
If the deal goes down, does it make New Jersey a contender now and for years to come? Here are five reasons why it does and five why it doesn't.
What do you think of the trade? Let it be known in the comments.
No. 5: Contenders: Veteran Leaders
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When you bring in what New Jersey is bringing in, you get guys who know what it takes to play in the postseason.
Chauncey Billups and Rip Hamilton have made numerous deep playoff runs in their careers and have championship rings sitting at home; that's something players will respect. While Carmelo Anthony hasn't had as much success as those two, he has made a deep playoff run in his career.
That would give the Nets some much-needed experience.
No. 5 Falling Short: Trading Draft Picks
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While this deal will make the Nets immensely better this year, after that it will be a bit of a stretch to get young talent in.
The Nets will be giving up too many draft picks to other teams in this deal and it's going to make it difficult to build the team around these guys, especially through the draft. There will be a good bit of salary on the team and building around it will be a challenge.
This doesn't make the Nets the best team in the East and they won't be able to turn into that with this proposed salary on the books.
No. 4 Contenders: Bottom Half of the Eastern Conference
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Here are the teams at the bottom half of the Eastern Conference playoff picture.
Atlanta, New York, Indiana and Philadelphia. That's not exactly something that scares you to death, is it?
Throw in that Milwaukee, Charlotte, Toronto and Detroit are ahead of them outside of the playoffs, that's not a group that will keep the potential new-look Nets out of the playoffs.
If New Jersey gets this trade through, there's no reason they shouldn't get into the playoffs.
No. 4 Falling Short: Top of the Eastern Conference
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While this trade would make the Nets a playoff team, it doesn't make them one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference.
Teams like Miami, Boston, Orlando and Chicago are all better teams than New Jersey if this trade goes through and since they'd likely have to face one of those teams in the first round, it would be a pretty short playoff run.
It certainly makes the Nets more relevant though.
No. 3 Contenders: Impressive Starting Lineup
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If this trade goes through, here's what New Jersey's starting lineup would look like.
You'd have Chauncey Billups and Rip Hamilton in the backcourt and then a frontcourt of Carmelo Anthony, Kris Humphries (this is if the Nets don't end up taking Al Harrington, as Denver wants) and Brook Lopez.
That's not a bad five to run out there every night.
No. 3 Falling Short: Trading Derrick Favors
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Derrick Favors was New Jersey's first round draft pick and was going to be what the Nets built around in future seasons.
He hasn't really blown people away on the court but he's shown flashes and could be a great player with some work. Now New Jersey is shipping him away for Anthony and two aging veteran players, which isn't always a great strategy.
I'm not sure trading Favors is the right move for New Jersey.
No. 2 Contenders: Billups and Hamilton Connection
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Chauncey Billups and Richard Hamilton formed one of the most dangerous backcourts in all of basketball for years.
When Billups was traded to Denver for Allen Iverson that tandem was broken up and the Pistons' dynasty ended. Now New Jersey has a chance to get two players who love playing with each other back in the fold.
Those two pick up where they left off and could make a big impact with Hamilton getting consistent minutes and running off of screens.
No. 2 Falling Short: Lack of Depth
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Beyond the starting five I mentioned earlier, there isn't exactly a ton of great depth behind that unit.
There's guys like Jordan Farmar and Sasha Vujacic on the bench, but there isn't really one role player on that bunch that makes me scared of the New Jersey Nets. This isn't the Miami Heat, who can overcome their lack of depth.
New Jersey will have to give its starters a ton of minutes every night.
No. 1 Contenders: Superstar Talent
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Adding Carmelo Anthony to the New Jersey Nets and then inking him to an extension would be a major coup for the Nets.
Everyone thinks he's eventually going to join the Knicks and if New Jersey could lock him up, it would help make the Nets a contender for years as they have an owner that is not afraid to spend money to win.
It would give New Jersey respect in league circles and more players would want to play there down the line.
No. 1 Falling Short: Possible Billups Buyout
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There have been whispers about Chauncey Billups and his future once he gets traded, if the deal goes through.
ESPN's Chris Broussard tweeted today that Billups would want a buyout or a long-term commitment after the season from the Nets if he's dealt. That could hurt New Jersey's chances down the line and it's something you don't want hanging over your team.
He's not Mr. Big Shot anymore, but he's still a valuable piece and the Nets will need him past this year.
Conclusion
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In the end, this trade will not make the New Jersey Nets a contender for anything.
Will it make them relevant? Sure. Will it make them a playoff team? You bet. But it will not mean anything in terms of major success in the long run. There are too many good teams at the top of the Eastern Conference that have way more depth and talent than New Jersey.
The Nets would make the playoffs if this deal goes down, but it won't mean much more once the playoffs get underway.
