Carmelo Anthony: 3 Trade Destinations

Carmelo Anthony has found himself in a precarious situation.

The 34-year-old, not-so-shiny NBA star was traded to the Chicago Bulls Tuesday in what is becoming another part of his story, which seems to be on the track to the finish after the climax of his career.

He can still score and shoot well, but after a disappointing season with the Oklahoma City Thunder, and half a season doing much of nothing with the Houston Rockets, he finds himself in a position where he is predicted to do nothing with the Bulls but be trade bait.

Since his age is starting to catch up with him, he has to decide whether he wants to go for a team that will pay him a lot, or will give him the best shot for a championship.

It will be very hard for a contender to make room for him, both roster-wise and money-wise, so here are three teams that have the potential to make him a key piece of their offenses and could possibly offer him a lot of money.

Keep in mind, Anthony will be an unrestricted free agent after this season, since his one-year, $2.39 million contract (with a $1.5 million cap hit) will be up.

Also, that is a pretty cheap price to take on for a guy with his background.

Detroit Pistons

The Pistons already have a lot of money dedicated to Blake Griffin, Andre Drummond and Reggie Jackson, and with no indications of any of those three and the team splitting anytime soon, that does not leave a lot of money left for Anthony.But Anthony is a scorer, and, just as important, a decent shooter.

Anthony is also a clutch scorer, and adding him to the roster could give the team a push for the playoffs, since they are two games outside of contention right now.

Chicago would want something in return, and with Wendell Carter Jr. out 8-12 weeks, the Bulls are missing 10 points and seven rebounds per game.

Detroit could deal a guy like Henry Ellenson, averaging six points and four and a half rebounds per game, to help Chicago fill that void, along with possibly Reggie Bullock, who’s 12.3 points per game you replace with Anthony.

Sending Bullock would also make the deal more desirable for Chicago, as they would be adding another guy who can score. Plus, since Bullock is an unrestricted free agent after this season, Chicago has no long-term commitment to him.

Cleveland Cavaliers

The Anthony-to-Cleveland transaction that had been rumored in the past could finally come to fruition.

Cleveland has no chance for the playoffs, sitting in last place in the Eastern Conference.

But they do have a rookie they are hoping will be a star in Collin Sexton that needs some guidance to be a scorer and have possible money to give Anthony.

The biggest contract the Cavaliers have is for Kevin Love at $24.1 million, with the next highest at $14.7 million for J.R. Smith.

The Cavaliers would get a guy who can score to help the offense for next year, when Love is back from injury and Sexton has more experience.

Again, with the Bulls being without Carter Jr. out for a while, Cleveland could send Larry Nance Jr. to Chicago as a guy who is averaging 8.8 points per game and 7.5 rebounds per game.

Also, they could go ahead and cut the ties with JR Smith: he demands too much money to only average 6.7 points per game. Yes, reports say Cleveland may have trouble getting rid of Smith, but if they can make the deal work, they have more space to get Anthony for a couple years and have more money for Sexton.

With Smith gone, there remains more room to pay Anthony. Smith’s contract would be troublesome to get the Bulls to take on, but for 2019, he is only guaranteed $3.87 million and, if waived on or before June 30, he is not guaranteed his whole $14 million.

So the Cavs could send cash with the trade (does not take a hit on the team’s cap) and the Bulls could waive him if they do not see a use for him for the rest of the season.

Carmel Anthony and JR Smith were teammates together in New York, but could Smith find himself traded to Chicago for Anthony? Photo courtesy of USA Today: https://ftw.usatoday.com/2016/05/jr-smith-carmelo-anthony-knicks.

Atlanta Hawks

The Hawks are in disarray and need anything that can help set them back on the right track.

It would be awkward to get Anthony back after waiving him July 30 last year, but he could bring some help to the table.

Kent Bazemore is having a great year, but even then he is not the guy a team would hang their hat on, only averaging 14 points and four rebounds per game. Trae Young is also looking like a budding star in his rookie campaign, averaging 16.1 points and 7.2 assists per game.

Neither are able to demand a star-player type of contract right now, and seeing as both are under contract for next season still (Young for the next four, Bazemore for just next year with a player option) money should not be an issue if the Hawks want to pay Anthony to stay for a few years.

For the Bulls, starting with the need for another solid guy on the inside, Dewayne Dedmon would be a solid option to send to Chicago to make up for Carter Jr.’s absence, as he is averaging 10.1 points and 7.5 rebounds per game.

To spice things up, the Hawks could send one of their second-round picks for the 2019 draft, since they would have Anthony, Young and Bazemore carrying the offensive load, with the chance for a good first-rounder to develop.

Why Not the West?

Yes, all three of these teams are in the East. Yes, two of them have no shot of the playoffs this year. But all of them have the ability to make the playoffs, if not this year, in the next season or two because of the weak competition for the lower spots in the playoffs.

He could go to a team in the west, of course, but, in general, most teams have their money dedicated to too many important players or are in positions to just draft the talent needed.

For example, the Phoenix Suns already have Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton for the future, and will likely have a high draft pick.

The Minnesota Timberwolves have a lot of money invested in Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins and are doing better without Jimmy Butler, a player that Anthony is similar to.

Featured image courtesy of ClutchPoints.

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