It…has…finally happened.
Carmelo Anthony, NBA and international basketball star, has been traded to the on-the-rise New York Knicks. I can only imagine that Knicks fans are beside themselves. The Brooklyn native is coming home to the Big Apple.
This NBA season began with trade rumors swirling around Carmelo Anthony like the headbands he sports in each and every game. There wasn’t a game in which Anthony played, one of his highlights played on ESPN or an in depth NBA analysis that lacked the obligatory, “it’s looking more and more like New York/New Jersey will make a deal for Carmelo Anthony before the trade deadline” discussion.
The NYK were the front-runners from the get-go, and I believe that Melo will be a beautiful fit with Coach D’Antoni, Amar’e Stoudemire and the fast-paced system that is presently in place. A system much more geared toward outscoring opponents than stopping them with tenacious D.
The deal involved the New York Knicks, the Denver Nuggets and the Minnesota Timberwolves. While the details of most of the deal qualify as business-as-usual, New York is clearly the big winner, acquiring point guard Chauncey Billups along with Carmelo Anthony. This brings some much needed veteran leadership to Madison Square Garden. While Billups won’t be the young athlete that Raymond Felton was for the Knicks (Felton went to Denver in the trade), he’ll be able to focus on distributing to two of the NBA’s most prolific scorers.
Perhaps the best news for Knicks fans when considering the bigger picture: Stoudemire is only 28; Anthony is only 26. This gives the squad some serious leverage in terms of attracting high profile free agents as well as role-play veterans.
Oh, the Eastern Conference race has become very interesting.
THE CARMELO ANTHONY TO THE NEW YORK KNICKS SONG http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9S2sLe8VuMo ‘Hello Mello’