Can you picture him in a Cavs uni?If you’re a Cavs fan, or even if you’re just a LeBron fan, as you’re picking up the pieces of a heart-wrenching Game 7 today, you have to be disgusted by the supporting cast LeBron has to work with (and if you’re not, you’re far too nice).
After the game yesterday, LeBron stated the obvious when he said, “We need to get better.” But how? Cavalier Attitude puts together a deal that would cost Cleveland a lot, but would also land them Carmelo Anthony. (And before you start killing a blogger for coming up with his own trade scenario, think about some of the ridiculous trades and signings you’ve seen go down recently. The highway robbery that brought Pau to L.A.? Or everything the Knicks have done over the past years? A blogger’s opinion can’t be any more crazy than some of the moves or ideas that have come from the “pros.”)
Here’s CA’s proposal:
The Cavs should also be willing to take back some bad contracts in return. And boy, do the Nuggets have plenty. Kenyon Martin may be known now more for having the worst contract in the league instead of the high-flying alley-oop finisher with Jason Kidd he was in New Jersey. K-Mart’s deal runs through 2010 with a player option in excess of $16 million for 2010-11. Seeing that he’s not going to get anywhere close to that on the open market when he’ll be 32-years old and even more washed up, bet the mortgage on him exercising that option.
But if the Cavs look to entice the Nuggets for Melo, then they have to take K-Mart back. If not K-Mart, then Denver will throw Nene and his poor health combined with bad contract at the Cavs. Nene’s deal goes through 2011 with a player option worth $11.6 million for 2011-12.
And if you’re Ferry, you let the Nuggets pick which one is coming your way if this is all a question of whether or not you’re getting Carmelo Anthony. As for the specifics of Melo’s contract, he was the lone member of the 2003 draft headliners to not take a shorter deal, opting instead for a four-year contract with a player option for a fifth season. That deal, like Nene’s, goes through ‘11 with an option for ‘11-12.
So here’s what the Cavs can do to get a talent like Carmelo Anthony next to LeBron James: Szczerbiak, Jones, Smith, first-round picks in ‘09 and ‘11, whichever player the Cavs draft this June, Anderson Varejao, and Daniel Gibson all to the Nuggets for Carmelo Anthony and Kenyon Martin. Denver gets $23 million coming off the books in 2009 and gets rid of two contracts that go through 2011. They also get two first-round picks, a draft prospect from 2008, and two solid young role players in Varejao and Gibson.
Sure, LeBron would be sad to see AV and Boobie, two of his favorites, leave. But we all know of his well-documented friendship with Anthony, and it would be a dream come true for him to join forces with Melo in Cleveland. While both guys play the small forward position, both are versatile enough to move around and play at multiple spots. At 6′9″ and 260 pounds (according to himself), LeBron’s big enough to play the power forward position. He is just coming off a season where he averaged a career-high 7.9 boards as a small forward.Or he can play the two-guard. That combination of size and speed would be devastating for every shooting guard in the NBA.
Melo, on the other hand, showed a vast array of post moves in FIBA two summers ago. He had developed a versatile offensive game and also averaged a career-high in boards with 7.4 this past season. He can play either one of the forward positions and is also versatile enough to play the off-guard at times, as well.
The matchup nightmares would be absolutely devastating. And in a Game 7 where LeBron is carrying his team on his back and looking around breathlessly for help, he’d have to look no further than Melo, who would gladly step up and pick up the scoring load for his high school pal.
Is it a long shot? Well, not nearly as much of a long shot as the Cavs getting either Jason Kidd or Mike Bibby at this past deadline based on the garbage assets they had. But now, they have all the things that a team looking to rebuild is looking for. If Denver is serious about moving Carmelo Anthony, Cleveland’s package of $23 million in expiring contracts, two first-round picks, whoever is drafted in the first-round this year, and two guys like Varejao and Gibson is an absolute homerun.
And they get rid of Martin’s contract. Absolute gold on both ends.
For the full post, go HERE.
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May 19th, 2008 at 1:41 pm
GEE...first impulse was to run up on you and do a Rambo.. says:
It would be better than what they have till Melo’ does his annual F*** up lol.
Would and could be alley-oops and dunks galor with them together and make some lil scrubby pg look good.
Still I think LeBron would do better with someone more stable and more in the create your own shot type of pg deal. Either that or a center like Aldrige or someone.
May 19th, 2008 at 1:53 pm
Sam I Am says:
I don’t like it.
May 19th, 2008 at 2:01 pm
Mike C says:
Putting Melo together with LeBron will spell doom for the rest of the East for the next decade. Everyone’s down on him after the Lakers series, but Melo is still the second best pure scorer in the league. He missed a lot of lay-ups in that series, but it was frightening to me how he got so close to the basket each time he drove or posted up. When he gets those to fall, which he normally does, there is no stopping him.
May 19th, 2008 at 2:26 pm
Me says:
All this trade rumors might be a way to set players straight. How about Jay-Z and his ball buddy Lebron I think Jay would like to see Bron playing for his team
May 19th, 2008 at 2:35 pm
You Can't Handle the "Truth" says:
Sounds good on paper…
May 19th, 2008 at 2:46 pm
Myrie says:
hahaha…
Imagine all the racing Carmelo and LeBron would do after practice.
How do you think would owe the most money in speeding tickets at the ned of the season?
May 19th, 2008 at 3:00 pm
Celts Fan says:
If you’re the Cavs, you make that deal in a second. I don’t think the Nuggets should, but I wouldn’t even think about moving Melo…
May 19th, 2008 at 3:03 pm
djKianoosh says:
That’s nice, but if you give up varejao and joe smith, you expect big Z and ben wallace to hold down the fort down low? for how long? both are aging and you need somebody to bang and board. who’s going to defend Duncan, Amare, KG, Dirk, Yao, Oden, etc?
Denver might do that trade though, so there is potential in a deal like this. Cleveland just has to make sure they have guys who can rebound. Melo is not a dedicated rebounder. sorry, he just aint. You’d have bron at the 2 and melo at the 3. sure it’s killer. who’s the point guard again?
May 19th, 2008 at 3:09 pm
Three Stacks says:
That team would give Cleveland a starting 5 of West, Lebron, Melo, Wallace, and Ilgauskas. So basically you’re switching Wally for Melo in the starting 5, which is a huge upgrade. Except you’re losing an awful lot of shooting and hustle by trading Varejao, Gibson, and Smith. And the defense would suffer.
That team would probably be exactly where the Cavs are now, maybe the 3rd or 4th best team in the East. So why trade away draft picks and cap space to be in the same exact position?
But the Cavs aren’t as good as they played this series. If Doc Rivers was half a coach, Boston would’ve won in 5 or 6 games. Lebron is gonna have to wait awhile for his title, and by the time he gets one, he’ll probably be long gone from Cleveland.
May 19th, 2008 at 3:10 pm
DaPro says:
Won’t work cause Bronnie is out in two years. He wants to go to NY and ball for the Brooklyn Jiggas.
That would be a sick tandem though. Melo can get his with the best of them. Once he learns to play within the game its a wrap.
May 19th, 2008 at 3:10 pm
daquest?on Im Regularly Irregular says:
this is worse than the proposed new jersey deal and again im not sure the thuggets want to rebuild again and no sj kianoosh the nuggets arent stupid enough to make this horrible trade, would this trade make the nuggets better? no and again the nuggets are not rebuilding
May 19th, 2008 at 3:12 pm
weng santos says:
Melo has the moves.
And with an attention-grabber of a superstar teammate in LeBron who’s as unselfish as they come, he could do what he does best- score.
It’s not even what he can do now- which is a lot, by the way- but how much better LeBron would make Melo in that set-up.
Melo would get his, and LeBron would get his help.
May 19th, 2008 at 3:18 pm
Jordan says:
Hmm…First of all, the trade seems pretty bad for the Nuggets. I understand that Wallyworld and Boobie are probably better fits in a more uptempo game (although, I’m starting to wonder if Wally isn’t best suited for an early retirement). Varejao is a gem and is very underrated for what he brings. But, for a team that had one of the highest payrolls in the league and had high hopes of a championship, receiving back no player even remotely in Melo’s atmosphere is a deal breaker (at least with this proposed Nets deal, the Nugs get Jefferson). Also, from the Cavs standpoint, I understand that Cleveland fans feel that the Cavs have no offensive talent. Your solution is to bring in another talented offensive player. However, oftentimes, solutions aren’t found in A + B = C answers. Melo is one of the worst defensive players in the league. He’s lazy and is coming from an environment where that laziness was nurtured and even tutored (AI, for everything he gives come gameday, he unfortunately doesn’t like to practice). The Cavs win and stay close because they have a top five defensive team and the second best (or first best depending on your take) closer in the game. Taking away Varejao and Smith and adding a horrific defender significantly weakens the team. K-Mart is an injury risk. Wallace is a former shell of himself. Plus, subtracting Wally, Boobie and to a lesser extent Damon Jones, takes away every decent 3 point shooter on the team (save Pavlovic) and will have defenses packing the middle. Add to this the inevitable alpha dog battle between Melo and Lebron (Melo has not proven to be the most stable head, nor, for that matter, a wiling or even able passer), and this trade is shaping up to be a disaster. Especially since Melo’s deal runs longer, and Lebron can opt out in 2010. Think the Cavs would be happy to have Melo and not Lebron? I know you wouldn’t be. Nice attempt, but try something else.
May 19th, 2008 at 3:19 pm
do it! says:
AI should just opt out an go join Lebron!
May 19th, 2008 at 3:23 pm
karizmatic says:
This idea may sound awkward to a lot of folks, but me personally I would have rather had the Cavs find a way to get Ben Gordon in the Bulls trade. I’ve always been a proponent of having LBJ play the point ala Magic and that would let Gordon be the undersized 2 guard he is. They could switch assignments on D. They Keep Pavlovic probably don’t have Wallace in that scenario and Varejao starts along with Ilgauskas. That sounds like a better deal to me than what they got. But if they could get Melo again I’d have LBJ run point and Melo run 3.
May 19th, 2008 at 3:38 pm
yallallreadyknow says:
carmelo anthony is the most OVERrated player in the nba. the bum is just..well….a bum. glenn robinson part ii. no more, no less.
denver should trade him for a couple of snow balls
May 19th, 2008 at 3:45 pm
luckylester says:
Carmelo is a good offensive player - very good - if he could just cut lazy-ish-hole out of his personality diet he would be one of the league’s best players. But I have to be honest, LeBron would probably punch Melo in the face after playing 10 games with his defenseless tail. Melo is equally as bad as Luke Ridnour defensively.
Melo is 10X better than Glenn Robinson, but equally as bad as him defensively.
May 19th, 2008 at 4:17 pm
miamiVIS3 says:
What I don’t understand if the nuggets wanna try a different look s why they don’t trade AI unless they plan on scrapping the whole thing.
May 19th, 2008 at 5:04 pm
Lady Luck says:
Let the trade rumors begin!!!!
Trading AI to Cleveland sounds a lot better for both teams. I think that once Lebron becomes a better post player and mid range shooter, the lane will become clogged with both he and Melo. Also, Z and Wallace are not getting any younger. The big man issue must be addressed and Kenyon is NOT the answer.
It sounded like Melo to NJ seemed to make more sense.
May 19th, 2008 at 5:23 pm
djKianoosh says:
yeah, AI to cleveland instead of Melo would make more sense to the Nuggets cause AI is old (even though we all love him, and we know he hasn’t slowed down a bit) but he’s still several years older than melo.
AI could start, with Delonte alongside him, basically a younger Eric Snow type player (maybe not as good defensively). James at the 3… I still think the bigs are getting old and this trade hurt them in the rebounding department.
interesting. very interesting.
May 19th, 2008 at 5:42 pm
GEE...first impulse was to run up on you and do a Rambo.. says:
AI to Cleveland would be sick!…Championship!
Melo to Jers does seem better.
Lady you don’t see LeBron having the same type of game the rest of his life lol?
Drive and hoist up threes and drive again. I don’t see him getting better post moves and most def. don’t see the mid-range j coming no time soon.
May 19th, 2008 at 6:14 pm
do it! says:
AI doesn’t have to be traded, he can opt out this year if he wants…
May 19th, 2008 at 6:34 pm
Billy Sunday says:
AI and LeBron is stupid you will never win with AI……Melo and Lebron is way better deal
May 19th, 2008 at 9:02 pm
Dagomar says:
Yeah, this is a great idea.
The Cavs really do need a guy who plays the exact same position as Lebron James, except worse. Instead of, you know, a 20/10 big man or a real PG.
Yeah, let’s get another SF.
May 20th, 2008 at 12:23 am
doc says:
Gee cut that hate out Bron 23 how the hell he not gonna improve if he work on his game.
May 20th, 2008 at 8:42 am
GEE...My knee bone's connected to my hardy-har-har-har says:
LOL cause I think he is satisfied with where his game is. Maybe a little, but I don’t see his game going beyond what we have “witnessed” already.
May 20th, 2008 at 3:01 pm
nick says:
the combo of melo and bron would destroy the east. who do you put ur best defender on and if lebron starts at sg, thats a nightmare matchup.
May 22nd, 2008 at 2:32 am
tealish says:
nick: you’re forgetting Melo sucks.
May 22nd, 2008 at 8:52 pm
Jeffrey says:
That trade (as well as my dreams of getting laid by Lauren London) will never happen.
May 30th, 2008 at 3:10 pm
Ritesh says:
Interesting trade…but it would make sense if the Nuggets were targeting a specific free agent or got somebody of real value back. Expiring money and draft picks is all good, but is that really all Melo’s worth? If so, how much has that guy fallen from being looked at as LeBron’s equal back when they were drafted in ‘03 to being looked at as somebody that Denver is looking to move for cap space and draft picks?
And Jeffrey…Lauren London isn’t that hot. I hope you’ve hit far better by now.