Carmelo Anthony hasn’t played a game in the NBA since November 8, 2018. That might not seem like a long time, but that inactive period accounts for over 35 missed games. The Houston Rockets traded him to the Chicago Bulls, where he was waived without playing in a game for them.
While the Los Angeles Lakers might have an interest in him, that doesn’t mean they should act on it if it could be detrimental to the team. Some superstars aren’t willing to admit when their game is in decline, as it has been for Anthony for a while now. Don’t get me wrong, he was a great player during his peak years, but those have come and gone.
Anthony won’t solve the Lakers problems because he’d likely want to have a starting position or play more minutes than he should. In the games he did play for Houston, the team went 4-6 and he ended up playing 30+ minutes in half of those games. In his last game, he went 1-11 from the field, including 0-6 from 3-point land.
With the absence of Lonzo Ball at the moment, the team needs someone who will take the ball to the rim and get buckets. They also need someone who can play defense at a high level and I’m not confident that Anthony can do either of those things effectively anymore. Even when Ball returns, Anthony would need the ball in his hands and would take away from crucial development for younger players while he’s on the court at 20+ minutes a game if he refuses to come off of the bench.
I’m all for having veterans who are willing to work with a young team, but the Lakers shouldn’t give up those young players for a veteran unless they’re a superstar who is still playing at a high level. Even Indiana Pacers fans don’t want Carmelo Anthony coming near their team.
I don’t think @TEastNBA could be more against the Carmelo Anthony stuff. https://t.co/269kfAKpsR
— 8 Points, 9 Seconds (@8pts9secs) January 27, 2019
Right now, the Lakers are just below .500. They’re sitting at the edge of the playoff race and we can only hope that once Lonzo is back and various ailments affecting the team are healed, the team will get things rolling again and pick up the pace. The Lakers made a trade that opened up a roster spot before the deadline; they could pick up Anthony without sacrificing any players. However, I still think they’d be sacrificing someone’s time (likely one of the younger players) on the court since he’d want to play hefty minutes.
We saw how Anthony meshed with other superstars on Houston and things just didn’t work out. I don’t see how bringing him to Los Angeles would make much of a difference there. Anthony plays the way he plays and doesn’t seem willing to adapt his game much at this point in his career.
