Hindsight— Melo trade

I think what everyone is saying is that Carmelo and Amare aren’t working out together and the Knicks are worse now.  The Knicks didn’t actually give up THAT much.  Gallo is an all-star now and Raymond Felton has been good the past few years but none of those guys were all-stars last year, even though Gallo might be an all-star this year.  The Knicks traded those two good players and a couple of rotation-type guys in Mozgov and Wilson Chandler (started sometimes but not the best of the best), plus they got Chauncey Billups who is still a very solid player.  

On paper, the trade was fairly even.  Back then you would think that the trade would be in the Knicks favor.  But, things aren’t working out that way now.  The Nuggets are utilizing Gallo greatly, and they turned Felton into Andre Miller.  Mozgov is playing some good minutes.  They got Chandler but he is over in China or somewhere but the Nuggets got the better end of the deal.  The Nuggets didn’t really go anywhere with Carmelo (except for one year or two) and they replaced him with some nice young players. 

Melo and Amare don’t fit, and the Nuggets team clicked from the very beginning.  Sometimes that happens.  The same thing basically happened to the Nets where they got Deron Williams, and the team is still underperforming.  Even worse, they traded a great pick and Derrick Favors to get D-Will.  Well, the Jazz should be in the playoff hunt and the Nets won’t be.  Those two "superstar" trades worked out for the teams that traded them.  Last year, the Nuggets and Jazz weren’t going anywhere and their superstars weren’t happy.  Well, the best thing to do is to trade them for young assets and rebuild. 

 Yes, the Knicks gave up too much, but they didn’t want to take the risks.

To me, if the Knicks didn’t trade for him, he would have been traded anyway. The Nuggets were just too afraid of getting nothing back for their star. But imagine that Carmelo gets traded, his team goes to the conference finals and the Knicks get swept in the first round. Melo would be inclined to sign with the team he is at.

And people say Melo wanted a deal with the old CBA. I don’t find that hard to believe.

I like Melo’s game and its fun to watch, but he and Amare were doomed from the start. 

The Knicks traded Felton but they got Billups in return, so that is basically a wash.  Wilson Chandler is in China right now, so if you look at the trade RIGHT NOW it is Carmelo Anthony going to the Knicks, and Gallo and Mozgov going to the Nuggets.  I wouldn’t say that the Knicks gave up too much.  Last year, "on paper" the Knicks received the best two players in the deal.  But, that is why the play the game.

are playing they way back into shape and its obvious with last nights game…  Everyone keep saying they can’t play with each other but I think everyone is impatient…  The biggest problem with this team is the role players… These guys aren’t hitting the 3’s and other than Balkman no one plays D…  I think its time for a new coach with defensive tendencies…  Also Amare taking a 3 pointer with 11 seconds left and that being OK to Mikey D is nuts… Smh..  I think they can do it…  Call me crazy but I think losing like this will only help in the long run…  I saw Amare and Melo playing a 2 man game last night…  And also moving the ball around finally…  The Nuggets are blessed with defensive stoppers and a deep team in a 66 fast pace season…  I don’t think either team gave up too much… I just think the Knicks were better off trying to get a PG than going after Tyson Chandler…  Amare scores a bulk of his points playing C…  

This team can definitely work and be one of the better teams in the league but they need to fire Mike D’Antoni.  He’s a terrible coach and he’s always been a terrible coach.  Yeah, it’s fun when you throw in a couple of athletic guys and three point shooters on a team that isn’t expected to win, you can sell tickets and watch extremely fun and high scoring basketball, but when you HAVE to win, that’s when it changes.

That’s when defense should be a priority.  That’s when ball movement should come first.  That’s when highlight reel flashes doesn’t do a damn thing.

Sure, if I was the GM for a team that’s not going anywhere like the Raptors or Wizards, I’d hire Mike D’Antoni just to sell some tickets but when it comes to a team that actually has to win a championship, I would not go anywhere near D’Antoni.

I think that’s the MAIN problem but its a combination of things…  Bringing in a new coach with a new philosophy right now isn’t going to win ish with this fast pace schedule…  I do think rotations and player personel would def increase the chances of them making some noise in the playoffs… I think sitting Chandler and playing if off the bench would do wonders for this team…

 Huh, Tuck, why would you sit Chandler? Of course he can’t play all 48, but the guy has to be better than any of the backup centers? Would you try to play Amare at the 5? Sure, you could do that and you probably should. But only for about 5 minutes a game. Or only against a few teams. 

I don’t think Anthony was signing with another team, so the Knicks could have gotten him in free agency. And . . . if you figure that he wasn’t signing with another team, then any team that traded for him was just renting him for a season. The Knicks were offering Gallinari since they play the same position. That alone was more than any other team was going to offer just to rent Anthony for the season. That should have basically been the trade. Maybe throw in whatever else you need to make the salary work, like Felton and Gallinari. But nothing more.