NBA Rumors: Lakers Preparing To Sign Carmelo Anthony?
Are the Los Angeles Lakers preparing to sign Carmelo Anthony?
As of right now, the situation appears to be the same as it was a month ago.
Anthony, 35, is without a team to call his own.
There is certainly interest among certain members of the Lakers organization in bringing Anthony in, but those members are on the player side – not the administrative side.
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A few weeks ago, Kyle Kuzma expressed his annoyance at the fact that Anthony remains out of the league.
“Melo is easily better than half the league right now,” he said.
“There’s no question about it. He should be on a team right now. He’s still one of the best players.”
Kuzma’s thoughts were echoed by LeBron James’ best friend, Dwyane Wade.
“Hopefully he gets an opportunity to be with a team this season because he has a lot to still offer the right team in the right role and the right situation,” he said.
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Over the past couple of months, Anthony has been linked to three teams: the Lakers, Brooklyn Nets and New York Knicks.
The Lakers connection is obvious – he is a veteran scorer on a team that has a shortage of guys that can score effectively 1-on-1.
Brooklyn also makes a lot of sense. Newly signed free agents Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving are big fans of Anthony’s game and believe he should be a on a roster.
They have reportedly made a big push for the team to sign him – unfortunately to no avail.
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According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, the Nets are currently “very unlikely” to sign Anthony at this stage.
Although a viable addition to the roster, league sources say the Brooklyn Nets are unlikely to sign free agent Carmelo Anthony.
More on pre-training camp from @ShamsCharania here 👇 https://t.co/xvDLbFCz4P
— The Athletic New York (@TheAthleticNYC) September 23, 2019
The Knicks are another team whose name has popped up – mainly due to the history shared between Anthony and the organization.
There was a rumor that if they had been able to lure in Irving and Durant, the Knicks would have signed Anthony as well.
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Sadly, that did not come to fruition.
Last year, Anthony played just 10 games as a member of the Houston Rockets.
He was then promptly traded to the Chicago Bulls before ultimately being waived.
Anthony was not signed for the rest of the season. He has not appeared in an NBA game since November of last year.
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Over the past two years Anthony has been waived twice and traded three times.
It has been a sad fall from grace for a player who earned 10 All-Star selections from 2006 to 2017 and made the All-NBA team six times.
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Over the course of his career, Anthony boasts averages of 24 points and 6.5 rebounds per game.
After solid stints with the Denver Nuggets and Knicks, he landed on hard times with the Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets.
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In his last two seasons, he has averaged 16.2 points per game and 13.4 points per game, respectively.
While the Nets and Knicks are seemingly no longer viable options for his services, the Lakers still make a lot of sense.
Los Angeles lost a potent scoring option earlier this summer when DeMarcus Cousins got hurt.
As it stands, the team’s roster consists mainly of players who need shots created for them.
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Anthony would be a good fit, and at this point he is probably humbled enough to accept whatever role the Lakers want him to play.
Will Los Angeles ultimately sign Anthony?
It remains to be seen.
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Should they?
It would certainly make a lot of sense.
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Charles Kruger has been credentialed to cover two Super Bowls, four NBA Finals, and one World Series. A 20-year veteran in the sports world, he has sources spanning the NBA, MLB, NFL, UFC and NASCAR. Currently residing in Los Angeles, Calif., he is Game 7’s go-to source for rumors surrounding the Lakers, Clippers and Dodgers.
For me if I’m the Lakers I would not hesitate to sign Carmelo Anthony if they want to be a contender for the championship this season.. I can put first five lebron melo kuzma Davis and Maggie…I can assure it will be easy for this player can rotate and look for the open man……the coach can relax and enjoy the game….so pls Lakers sign Carmelo….