NBA Trade Rumors: 10 Winners and Losers of a Carmelo Anthony Trade To NY Knicks
The NBA Trade Deadline is getting closer and closer, and the rumors are coming in fast and furious. One rumor that doesn't seem to be going away is Carmelo Anthony to the New York Knicks.
It's no secret that Anthony wants to play for the Knicks. He has said that New York is his "ultimate dream." But do the Knicks have enough to make a deal with the Nuggets happen on their own? Probably not, but that doesn't mean they can't find another team to get in on the deal.
There are a lot of positives and negatives for both teams if a deal is or isn't made. The Knicks want to re-energize their fan base, and have done a pretty good job of it so far this year, but they still need more. The Nuggets don't really stand a chance to keep him because he doesn't want to be there.
The Nuggets don't want to trade him just for the sake of trading him, nor should they. They need to find a deal that gets them back at least equal value, and the only team that seems able to give them that is New Jersey, but that deal fell through when Anthony refused to sign an extension with them.
It seems inevitable that Anthony will end up in New York one way or another.
We are going to look at this from the perspective that Anthony gets traded to New York, and 10 winners and losers from that potential deal.
Winner-Carmelo Anthony
1 of 10
A Carmelo trade to New York is a big time win for him. He gets to play in the place that he has always wanted to play. His marketing and endorsement deals will shoot through the roof playing in that media market and alongside A’Mare Stoudemire.
He would be a bigger star in New York because those fans are hungry for a true NBA superstar to get behind and lead the team going into the future.
He would be more beloved in New York than Denver at least in the beginning, but if the team doesn’t win a championship they will turn on him quick.
Loser-New York Knicks
2 of 10
The New York Knicks do not stand to gain anything from acquiring Carmelo Anthony. They would get a little bit more national attention, but the deal would benefit Anthony more than the team.
Anthony does not make the Knicks into a championship caliber team. As things stand right now they are a playoff team, and that’s a big step forward given where they have been, but Anthony doesn’t put them over the top.
They need to add a solid defender or two, and Anthony is not a very good defender. He is a great scorer, but the Knicks already score a ton of points every game.
Winner-New Jersey Nets
3 of 10
Even though the Nets have a lot to lose by not acquiring Anthony, they would set their franchise back another five years by getting rid of the talent it would take to bring him to New Jersey.
Yes, things aren’t great for the Nets right now, but you can’t mortgage your future to sell a few extra tickets today.
The young nucleus of Devin Harris, Brook Lopez and Derrick Favors will be much better for a longer period of time than Anthony and whatever players the team would get back in a deal.
Loser-New Jersey Nets
4 of 10
The New Jersey Nets have been the favorite to land Anthony for a long time. They have a great mix of young talent and draft picks that they can offer Denver in return. They even had a deal with the Nuggets done a month ago, but it fell through when Anthony refused to sign an extension.
The Nets are getting ready to move into a new arena in Brooklyn, and they need to find a big superstar player to build the team around in order to fill the new building.
If they miss out on Anthony the ramifications could be disastrous from a marketing standpoint. They would be able to sell a lot more tickets with that one big ticket player on the team.
Winner-Eastern Conference Playoff Teams
5 of 10
The New York Knicks are going to go to the playoffs this year regardless of whether or not Anthony joins the team or not. They are better equipped now to win a playoff series than they would be with Anthony, assuming that the deal with Denver is only a two team deal.
The Knicks would have to give up a lot of roster depth in order to acquire him, and that would be very detrimental to their playoff run.
It’s doubtful that the Knicks would win a playoff series either way, but wouldn’t you rather go for it with the best possible team instead of two top players and a bunch of guys picked up off the street?
Loser-Denver Nuggets
6 of 10
The Denver Nuggets had a great deal in place with New Jersey for Carmelo Anthony. They were going to acquire Devin Harris, Derrick Favors and a bunch of draft picks among other things for the beleaguered superstar.
Instead, they would be making a deal with the Knicks. The Knicks do have a ton of draft picks that they can include in the deal, but they don’t have the high ceiling talent that the Nets did.
Settling for a deal with the Knicks could put this franchise behind the 8-ball for a long time to come.
Winner-Western Conference Contenders That Aren’t The Lakers
7 of 10
There are reports going around that the Lakers are engaging the Nuggets in trade talks, specifically about Carmelo Anthony.
While he would not be a difference maker for a team like the Knicks, he would most certainly be a force on the Lakers, who are in need of another scorer to go along with Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol.
Plus, the Lakers are an older team, and they could stand to acquire a little more youth. Anthony has been in the league for seven years but is only 26 years old. If you put him on the Lakers they become favorites once again, but without him they will struggle against the top teams in the NBA.
Loser-Los Angeles Lakers
8 of 10
The Lakers are desperate to make a move of some kind, and since they are the Lakers they don’t make a small move. They have to make a huge splash somehow, someway.
If they were to miss out on Anthony they wouldn’t have a lot of other big time options to go to.
You can feel the urgency coming from this team with each passing day. They sense that there is something missing from this team, and they are poised to take the necessary steps to fix that.
Winner- David Stern And The NBA
9 of 10
Whether you like New York or not, it’s always better for the league when the Knicks are relevant. Since they play in the biggest media market in the world they bring added publicity to the league, and Lord knows they need all the positive attention that they can get right now.
The best way for the NBA to be relevant in New York again is to have a star player on the roster and the team to make the playoffs. They are going to make the playoffs no matter what because the eastern conference is so bad, and Anthony could be the star that they build around.
It’s easier for the league to market the product when teams in the big markets are good. Fortunately for them all the big market teams look like playoff locks (New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Boston).
Loser- Detroit Pistons
10 of 10
When the Nuggets and Nets had their deal in place the Pistons were also involved in that deal. They stood to get a lot of financial relief by acquiring the expiring contract of Troy Murphy from the Nets, and getting rid of one of Richard Hamilton, one of their most expensive players.
That deal fell apart, and the Pistons are still stuck with a lot of bad contracts. They have been desperate to find any team that would be willing to take someone like Ben Gordon off their hands, but no one has stepped up to the plate thus far.
A deal between New York and Denver would put a huge damper on the Pistons effort to get rid of some of their players and find some semblance of salary cap relief.
