Carmelo Anthony joined the Los Angeles Lakers last season with a firm understanding of what both sides’ expectations were. He wanted to compete for a title; the team needed an offensive spark plug off the bench.
By any objective measure, Anthony delivered on his side. He averaged 13.3 points per game on 44.1 percent shooting from the field and 37.5 percent shooting from beyond the arc.
Those stats were nearly identical to the 13.4 points per game he averaged with the Portland Trail Blazers one year earlier, only with them he shot a slightly better 42.1 percent from the field and 40.9 percent from three.
The Lakers did not hold up their end of the bargain, though. They failed to make the playoffs altogether – robbing Anthony of yet another shot at a championship as his career winds down.
Understandably, Anthony is now exploring his options for the 2022-23 NBA season.
In a recent conversation with NBA insider Sean Deveney, one league executive suggested that an Anthony-to-the Brooklyn Nets deal may be on the horizon.
“I’d expect [the Nets] to keep 14 guys, keep one spot open. There has been some talk about them signing Carmelo Anthony,” he said.
“They need another big guy, but they’re not feeling a lot of pressure as far as filling that spot. There are veterans they can sign this month or even early next month—Dwight Howard would be the obvious one, maybe Hassan Whiteside.
“Cody Zeller is out there, too. They want to see what they have with Nic Claxton, but they want some insurance there, too. And they’re going to play (Ben) Simmons there quite a bit in small ball lineups.”
Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson also recently specifically pointed to the Nets as a legit suitor for Anthony.
Some cite Carmelo Anthony’s thought process of a potential New York homecoming being “bigger than basketball” for proximity sake especially with his son Kiyan Anthony entering his sophomore year of high school at Christ The King High School. https://t.co/pj9M29SEQi
— 👑 Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson (@ScoopB) July 24, 2022
Anthony would obviously be a huge pick-up for Brooklyn. With Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving now officially back, he would shore up the bench in a very necessary way for arguably the best on-paper team in the East.
Is Anthony bogged down by some off-the-court drama? Sure. The veteran’s groupie situation from last season was problematic. Same with La La going into such unequivocal detail regarding why she dropped him.
But in the grand scheme of things, that’s the way life works in the NBA.
If the Lakers do lose Anthony, it’d be a huge blow for the team. Currently there is loose chatter about a potential trade between them and the Utah Jazz, as well as a fairly drastic one involving the Chicago Bulls.
Yikes. https://t.co/QZf8dFSmaK
— Game 7 (@game7__) August 23, 2022
However, nothing appears too close to getting done as of yet.
Will the Nets be able to steal Anthony from the Lakers? Or will he opt to stay in sunny L.A. to close out his career?
An answer should emerge soon enough.
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A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
