The Thunder just shoved all its chips on the table in the Carmelo Anthony trade
No matter how hard collective bargaining agreements attempt to even the playing field, basic NBA economics will always leave small market teams at a disadvantage. In Forbes' annual rankings of the most valuable NBA franchises, the New York Knicks, Los Angeles Lakers and Chicago Bulls were three of the top four. All three of those teams happen to be atrocious at winning basketball games, but because of their prestigious markets, the money will never stop rolling in, no matter the feebleness of the on-court product.
According to an investigative report from Zach Lowe and Brian Windhorst of ESPN, nine NBA teams lost money last season after the revenue-sharing process. Only one team was from a large market: Brooklyn.
Meanwhile, the Lakers can afford to sit back, and sign aging veterans Timofey Mozgov and Luol Deng to albatross contracts, and still rake in the cash. The Knicks can sign a broken Joakim Noah and Derrick Rose, and still make millions. The Bulls can sign an ancient Dywane Wade and Rajon Rondo, as well as actually give up assets for Cameron Payne (a player who one NBA coach recently said is not an NBA caliber player), and still cash an enormous check at the end of the year.
That sort of incompetent management would sink small market teams even further into the financial red, making it that much more important that small market organizations have savvy management in charge willing to take risks in order to survive.
Take the Oklahoma City Thunder, the second-smallest market in the entire league after the Memphis Grizzlies. Last summer, losing a superstar in his prime in Kevin Durant was as close as it gets to a deathblow. The team rebounded by riding one of the greatest statistical performances ever from superstar guard Russell Westbrook, but they still were bounced out of the 1st round of the playoffs.
With the 2017-2018 season fast approaching, Thunder general manager Sam Presti was surely aware that his lone star, Westbrook, would be a free agent after the season. His team had no other star power and could sink into irrelevance and financial struggle if Westbrook bolted.
Presti may have his critics, but no one in their right mind can accuse him of sitting on his hands. By completing a blockbuster trade for the wing superstar Paul George, Presti now had a ferocious dynamic duo. With players of George and Westbrook's caliber on board, a championship was a realistic goal.
But Presti wasn't done.
Right before training camps began, Presti went in for the kill, trading for disgruntled Knicks star Carmelo Anthony. The price? Simply a defensively challenged center in Enes Kanter and a defensively challenged wing in Doug McDermott. Not nothing, since Kanter and McDermott are both respectable scorers, but definitely not much.
This late into his career, the name "Carmelo Anthony" probably holds more value than his actual on-court impact. Melo, now an NBA graybeard at 33-years-old, is on the downside of his career. The Knicks were outscored by 5 points per 100 possessions when Melo was on the court last year. He shot a meager 43% from field goal and had a simply ungodly usage rate of 29%. Also, as it has been well-documented, Melo is a minus on defense. Adding a player like that, who has a big ego, to a team that will be trying to appease its two stars all year could create a somewhat fraught atmosphere.
But it could also create an unstoppable basketball team.
Close your eyes right now. Picture Russell Westbrook bolting to the rim, smoke in his trails, and slamming a thunderous dunk on his poor opponent. Picture Andre Roberson and Paul George suffocating opposing players on defense. Picture Steven Adams' soft-touch hook shots and defensive grittiness. That's enough to win the championship, and now Presti just added one of the most gifted scorers of his generation to the core.
Anthony may not be perfect, but he can still score like nobody else. He still averaged an excellent 22.2 points per game last year, and is one of the best individual scorers in the game. He's also an underrated distributor, and with the Thunder's array of proficient cutters, Melo will have a field day showing off his passing chops. Most importantly, Melo is a fantastic spot-up shooter, and that will be his most valued skill with George and Westbrook drawing extra defensive attention.
This experiment has brought in too much talent for an implosion to occur, but it should be noted that a lot could go wrong. Melo could force the issue, thinking he's still the player he once was. George could get frustrated by a lack of touches. Westbrook could potentially alienate both of them, and instead of three stars working together, the NBA could be treated to three disgruntled ones struggling to coexist.
But for a small market team facing the possibility of losing all three of its stars after the season, the gamble is well worth it.
According to an investigative report from Zach Lowe and Brian Windhorst of ESPN, nine NBA teams lost money last season after the revenue-sharing process. Only one team was from a large market: Brooklyn.
Meanwhile, the Lakers can afford to sit back, and sign aging veterans Timofey Mozgov and Luol Deng to albatross contracts, and still rake in the cash. The Knicks can sign a broken Joakim Noah and Derrick Rose, and still make millions. The Bulls can sign an ancient Dywane Wade and Rajon Rondo, as well as actually give up assets for Cameron Payne (a player who one NBA coach recently said is not an NBA caliber player), and still cash an enormous check at the end of the year.
That sort of incompetent management would sink small market teams even further into the financial red, making it that much more important that small market organizations have savvy management in charge willing to take risks in order to survive.
Take the Oklahoma City Thunder, the second-smallest market in the entire league after the Memphis Grizzlies. Last summer, losing a superstar in his prime in Kevin Durant was as close as it gets to a deathblow. The team rebounded by riding one of the greatest statistical performances ever from superstar guard Russell Westbrook, but they still were bounced out of the 1st round of the playoffs.
With the 2017-2018 season fast approaching, Thunder general manager Sam Presti was surely aware that his lone star, Westbrook, would be a free agent after the season. His team had no other star power and could sink into irrelevance and financial struggle if Westbrook bolted.
Presti may have his critics, but no one in their right mind can accuse him of sitting on his hands. By completing a blockbuster trade for the wing superstar Paul George, Presti now had a ferocious dynamic duo. With players of George and Westbrook's caliber on board, a championship was a realistic goal.
But Presti wasn't done.
Right before training camps began, Presti went in for the kill, trading for disgruntled Knicks star Carmelo Anthony. The price? Simply a defensively challenged center in Enes Kanter and a defensively challenged wing in Doug McDermott. Not nothing, since Kanter and McDermott are both respectable scorers, but definitely not much.
This late into his career, the name "Carmelo Anthony" probably holds more value than his actual on-court impact. Melo, now an NBA graybeard at 33-years-old, is on the downside of his career. The Knicks were outscored by 5 points per 100 possessions when Melo was on the court last year. He shot a meager 43% from field goal and had a simply ungodly usage rate of 29%. Also, as it has been well-documented, Melo is a minus on defense. Adding a player like that, who has a big ego, to a team that will be trying to appease its two stars all year could create a somewhat fraught atmosphere.
But it could also create an unstoppable basketball team.
Close your eyes right now. Picture Russell Westbrook bolting to the rim, smoke in his trails, and slamming a thunderous dunk on his poor opponent. Picture Andre Roberson and Paul George suffocating opposing players on defense. Picture Steven Adams' soft-touch hook shots and defensive grittiness. That's enough to win the championship, and now Presti just added one of the most gifted scorers of his generation to the core.
Anthony may not be perfect, but he can still score like nobody else. He still averaged an excellent 22.2 points per game last year, and is one of the best individual scorers in the game. He's also an underrated distributor, and with the Thunder's array of proficient cutters, Melo will have a field day showing off his passing chops. Most importantly, Melo is a fantastic spot-up shooter, and that will be his most valued skill with George and Westbrook drawing extra defensive attention.
This experiment has brought in too much talent for an implosion to occur, but it should be noted that a lot could go wrong. Melo could force the issue, thinking he's still the player he once was. George could get frustrated by a lack of touches. Westbrook could potentially alienate both of them, and instead of three stars working together, the NBA could be treated to three disgruntled ones struggling to coexist.
But for a small market team facing the possibility of losing all three of its stars after the season, the gamble is well worth it.
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