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The Oklahoma City Thunder celebrated their recent road wins at Indiana and Philadelphia, but a somber mood returned after they lost at the Knicks on Saturday.

Both Paul George and Carmelo Anthony are adjusting to different roles with the Thunder.

"We've never had chemistry problems. We like, and enjoy, playing with one another. It's never been a chemistry problem," George said. "We've just got to figure out how to do so, but there's never been chemistry problems with this group. We've embraced this since we came together that this was going to be a journey for us, and that's where we're at. We're within the thick of this journey right now."

"It is a different situation for me? Yes. Different dynamic for me? Yes," Anthony said. "Something I have to accept. Something I'm working on every day as far as my role on this team, what we need from me in order for this team to be successful. But this is, for me and the team, it's about big picture for us. It's a bigger picture. That's my goal and not be disappointed or get down when a game or two don't go your way or shots are not falling ,because our goal is a bigger picture."

Via Royce Young/ESPN

I'm not sure what the bigger picture here is... Playoffs? That seems like a possibility, they can sneak in around the 8th spot perhaps. Title? Put down the crack pipe. This experiment is working out just like I thought it would. I expect nothing less (and definitely nothing more) from a team with Melo plays for. Melo said he felt reborn when he got moved to the Thunder, but I see the same old guy selling the same old excuses while his team, as usual, swirls around the toilet bowl.

Hoopzilla wrote:I'm not sure what the bigger picture here is... Playoffs? That seems like a possibility, they can sneak in around the 8th spot perhaps. Title? Put down the crack pipe. This experiment is working out just like I thought it would. I expect nothing less (and definitely nothing more) from a team with Melo plays for. Melo said he felt reborn when he got moved to the Thunder, but I see the same old guy selling the same old excuses while his team, as usual, swirls around the toilet bowl.

I never understood this criticism. Melo is taking less shots and deferring to Westbrook and George. The main problem is Westbrook is scoring less this year than last and they never addressed the issue with the bench. Felton is a good backup guard but they need a 6th man to supplement the scoring. It's bad enough that when Roberson is on the floor it's like playing 5 on 4 offensively and throws off the spacing.

Bad coaching. Patterson should start.

Patterson is horrible, coaching is an issue, and so are you Paul.

Rollie wrote:

Hoopzilla wrote:I'm not sure what the bigger picture here is... Playoffs? That seems like a possibility, they can sneak in around the 8th spot perhaps. Title? Put down the crack pipe. This experiment is working out just like I thought it would. I expect nothing less (and definitely nothing more) from a team with Melo plays for. Melo said he felt reborn when he got moved to the Thunder, but I see the same old guy selling the same old excuses while his team, as usual, swirls around the toilet bowl.

I never understood this criticism. Melo is taking less shots and deferring to Westbrook and George. The main problem is Westbrook is scoring less this year than last and they never addressed the issue with the bench. Felton is a good backup guard but they need a 6th man to supplement the scoring. It's bad enough that when Roberson is on the floor it's like playing 5 on 4 offensively and throws off the spacing.

Did you not see the laugh from Melo when a reporter asked if he would consider coming off the bench? It is that type of arrogance and over inflated sense of self that has plagued Melo his entire career. A lot of people always thought Melo should have been a 6th man for this team to be successful and they are still saying that is what may help fix this mess. Melo's reluctance to embrace that role, the same way D Wade has, would go a long way towards helping the Thunder. D Wade would have had a much better argument to continue starting, he has always been a starter on good teams, Melo is the one that thinks he is a juggernaut while playing for teams that can't make the playoffs. Melo is and always will be his own worst enemy, the fans, his teams and teammates are just victims to his arrogance.

Hoopzilla wrote:

Rollie wrote:

Hoopzilla wrote:I'm not sure what the bigger picture here is... Playoffs? That seems like a possibility, they can sneak in around the 8th spot perhaps. Title? Put down the crack pipe. This experiment is working out just like I thought it would. I expect nothing less (and definitely nothing more) from a team with Melo plays for. Melo said he felt reborn when he got moved to the Thunder, but I see the same old guy selling the same old excuses while his team, as usual, swirls around the toilet bowl.

I never understood this criticism. Melo is taking less shots and deferring to Westbrook and George. The main problem is Westbrook is scoring less this year than last and they never addressed the issue with the bench. Felton is a good backup guard but they need a 6th man to supplement the scoring. It's bad enough that when Roberson is on the floor it's like playing 5 on 4 offensively and throws off the spacing.

Did you not see the laugh from Melo when a reporter asked if he would consider coming off the bench? It is that type of arrogance and over inflated sense of self that has plagued Melo his entire career. A lot of people always thought Melo should have been a 6th man for this team to be successful and they are still saying that is what may help fix this mess. Melo's reluctance to embrace that role, the same way D Wade has, would go a long way towards helping the Thunder. D Wade would have had a much better argument to continue starting, he has always been a starter on good teams, Melo is the one that thinks he is a juggernaut while playing for teams that can't make the playoffs. Melo is and always will be his own worst enemy, the fans, his teams and teammates are just victims to his arrogance.

I saw the laugh... and I also laughed. Because like it or not, Melo is still one of their 3 best players. And to be fair, all three of those guys are shooting like crap. A lot of that goes back to the offense as a whole; A lot of that goes to whether Westbrook is capable of running a less predictable offense. (Can someone please move without the ball?) And of course, Rollie was on point about Roberson. It blew my mind when he signed that contract! Melo, George and Russ should start and finish games together and get staggered throughout. But the only way they start and finish strong is to get Roberson off the floor.

And Wade is coming off the bench because he wasn't getting his touches with the starting unit. It was more self-serving than sacrifice. Let's not pin a medal on him.

Pickled Prunes wrote:

Hoopzilla wrote:

Rollie wrote:
I never understood this criticism. Melo is taking less shots and deferring to Westbrook and George. The main problem is Westbrook is scoring less this year than last and they never addressed the issue with the bench. Felton is a good backup guard but they need a 6th man to supplement the scoring. It's bad enough that when Roberson is on the floor it's like playing 5 on 4 offensively and throws off the spacing.

Did you not see the laugh from Melo when a reporter asked if he would consider coming off the bench? It is that type of arrogance and over inflated sense of self that has plagued Melo his entire career. A lot of people always thought Melo should have been a 6th man for this team to be successful and they are still saying that is what may help fix this mess. Melo's reluctance to embrace that role, the same way D Wade has, would go a long way towards helping the Thunder. D Wade would have had a much better argument to continue starting, he has always been a starter on good teams, Melo is the one that thinks he is a juggernaut while playing for teams that can't make the playoffs. Melo is and always will be his own worst enemy, the fans, his teams and teammates are just victims to his arrogance.

I saw the laugh... and I also laughed. Because like it or not, Melo is still one of their 3 best players. And to be fair, all three of those guys are shooting like crap. A lot of that goes back to the offense as a whole; A lot of that goes to whether Westbrook is capable of running a less predictable offense. (Can someone please move without the ball?) And of course, Rollie was on point about Roberson. It blew my mind when he signed that contract! Melo, George and Russ should start and finish games together and get staggered throughout. But the only way they start and finish strong is to get Roberson off the floor.

And Wade is coming off the bench because he wasn't getting his touches with the starting unit. It was more self-serving than sacrifice. Let's not pin a medal on him.

Wade gets the medal for moving to the bench when everyone agreed it was the right move. The massive winning streak the Cavs have gone on prove that point. Whether it was sacrifice or not, his ego was set aside for the better of the team, something Melo will never agree to do, let's not pretend this isn't true.

Just because you are a top three player on the team does not mean you have to start. This is not a playmaker, a scorer and a defensive ace all sharing the floor, this is three scorers, so spreading them out a bit makes more sense, even if someone's ego has to take a hit.

I would argue that D Wade is a top three player for the Cavs and coming off the bench to let him get his game going with the bench has been a godsend for them. It's almost like the Cavs realised they were letting D Wade's playmaking skills go to waste with the starters, so they made the logical move and gave him some minutes with the bench. Melo could do the same for OKC's bench, but with more of a scorers mentality of course, he is not much of a playmaker for others.

I can agree that Melo finishing games makes sense, but there is no need for him to start the games, he would be a great boost to the offense when the starters hit the bench and would be given plenty of touches to get his game going while not affecting the other two from getting going as well. Then you can stagger them from there and let them finish the game together.

Well, they are playing better recently, even with less production from Melo

He should consider coming off the bench

Bad shooting…and the shots they make typically do not come from assists (25th in assist to FG ratio). It doesn’t take a genius to figure it out…these guys are either ballstoppers or, in Westbrook’s case, high usage stat mongers. They don’t shoot well because they do not move the ball well. Coaching should take part of the blame.

Hoopzilla wrote:

Rollie wrote:

Hoopzilla wrote:I'm not sure what the bigger picture here is... Playoffs? That seems like a possibility, they can sneak in around the 8th spot perhaps. Title? Put down the crack pipe. This experiment is working out just like I thought it would. I expect nothing less (and definitely nothing more) from a team with Melo plays for. Melo said he felt reborn when he got moved to the Thunder, but I see the same old guy selling the same old excuses while his team, as usual, swirls around the toilet bowl.

I never understood this criticism. Melo is taking less shots and deferring to Westbrook and George. The main problem is Westbrook is scoring less this year than last and they never addressed the issue with the bench. Felton is a good backup guard but they need a 6th man to supplement the scoring. It's bad enough that when Roberson is on the floor it's like playing 5 on 4 offensively and throws off the spacing.

Did you not see the laugh from Melo when a reporter asked if he would consider coming off the bench? It is that type of arrogance and over inflated sense of self that has plagued Melo his entire career. A lot of people always thought Melo should have been a 6th man for this team to be successful and they are still saying that is what may help fix this mess. Melo's reluctance to embrace that role, the same way D Wade has, would go a long way towards helping the Thunder. D Wade would have had a much better argument to continue starting, he has always been a starter on good teams, Melo is the one that thinks he is a juggernaut while playing for teams that can't make the playoffs. Melo is and always will be his own worst enemy, the fans, his teams and teammates are just victims to his arrogance.

How is Melo coming off the bench helping the Thunder? The plan all along was to run PG with the second unit. Besides, who replaces Melo in that lineup that would help the Thunder win? Patterson and his 8 points a game? Moving Melo to the bench is a lateral move, especially if he's on the floor with Westbrook.

There are three issues with the Thunder: Westbrook is scoring 10 points less than last year. His shooting percentage is bad. Second Andre Roberson messes up floor spacing because he can't shoot. Third they have no bench. Having Melo come off the bench with people that can't score doesn't solve anything because they would just double him.

Besides Melo is taking less shots than last year, so you can't say, "He's holding the ball too long."

Hoopzilla wrote:

Pickled Prunes wrote:

Hoopzilla wrote:
Did you not see the laugh from Melo when a reporter asked if he would consider coming off the bench? It is that type of arrogance and over inflated sense of self that has plagued Melo his entire career. A lot of people always thought Melo should have been a 6th man for this team to be successful and they are still saying that is what may help fix this mess. Melo's reluctance to embrace that role, the same way D Wade has, would go a long way towards helping the Thunder. D Wade would have had a much better argument to continue starting, he has always been a starter on good teams, Melo is the one that thinks he is a juggernaut while playing for teams that can't make the playoffs. Melo is and always will be his own worst enemy, the fans, his teams and teammates are just victims to his arrogance.

I saw the laugh... and I also laughed. Because like it or not, Melo is still one of their 3 best players. And to be fair, all three of those guys are shooting like crap. A lot of that goes back to the offense as a whole; A lot of that goes to whether Westbrook is capable of running a less predictable offense. (Can someone please move without the ball?) And of course, Rollie was on point about Roberson. It blew my mind when he signed that contract! Melo, George and Russ should start and finish games together and get staggered throughout. But the only way they start and finish strong is to get Roberson off the floor.

And Wade is coming off the bench because he wasn't getting his touches with the starting unit. It was more self-serving than sacrifice. Let's not pin a medal on him.

Wade gets the medal for moving to the bench when everyone agreed it was the right move. The massive winning streak the Cavs have gone on prove that point. Whether it was sacrifice or not, his ego was set aside for the better of the team, something Melo will never agree to do, let's not pretend this isn't true.

Just because you are a top three player on the team does not mean you have to start. This is not a playmaker, a scorer and a defensive ace all sharing the floor, this is three scorers, so spreading them out a bit makes more sense, even if someone's ego has to take a hit.

I would argue that D Wade is a top three player for the Cavs and coming off the bench to let him get his game going with the bench has been a godsend for them. It's almost like the Cavs realised they were letting D Wade's playmaking skills go to waste with the starters, so they made the logical move and gave him some minutes with the bench. Melo could do the same for OKC's bench, but with more of a scorers mentality of course, he is not much of a playmaker for others.

I can agree that Melo finishing games makes sense, but there is no need for him to start the games, he would be a great boost to the offense when the starters hit the bench and would be given plenty of touches to get his game going while not affecting the other two from getting going as well. Then you can stagger them from there and let them finish the game together.

Wade coming off the bench makes sense if the person replacing him in the lineup is productive. In the case of Melo, Patterson is not that person.

Rollie wrote:

Hoopzilla wrote:

Rollie wrote:
I never understood this criticism. Melo is taking less shots and deferring to Westbrook and George. The main problem is Westbrook is scoring less this year than last and they never addressed the issue with the bench. Felton is a good backup guard but they need a 6th man to supplement the scoring. It's bad enough that when Roberson is on the floor it's like playing 5 on 4 offensively and throws off the spacing.

Did you not see the laugh from Melo when a reporter asked if he would consider coming off the bench? It is that type of arrogance and over inflated sense of self that has plagued Melo his entire career. A lot of people always thought Melo should have been a 6th man for this team to be successful and they are still saying that is what may help fix this mess. Melo's reluctance to embrace that role, the same way D Wade has, would go a long way towards helping the Thunder. D Wade would have had a much better argument to continue starting, he has always been a starter on good teams, Melo is the one that thinks he is a juggernaut while playing for teams that can't make the playoffs. Melo is and always will be his own worst enemy, the fans, his teams and teammates are just victims to his arrogance.

How is Melo coming off the bench helping the Thunder? The plan all along was to run PG with the second unit. Besides, who replaces Melo in that lineup that would help the Thunder win? Patterson and his 8 points a game? Moving Melo to the bench is a lateral move, especially if he's on the floor with Westbrook.

There are three issues with the Thunder: Westbrook is scoring 10 points less than last year. His shooting percentage is bad. Second Andre Roberson messes up floor spacing because he can't shoot. Third they have no bench. Having Melo come off the bench with people that can't score doesn't solve anything because they would just double him.

Besides Melo is taking less shots than last year, so you can't say, "He's holding the ball too long."

Yes, Patterson and his 8 ppg replace Melo in the starting lineup. Melo can play with the scrubs on the second unit and take all the shots he wants. Patterson will stretch the floor with the starters and do something Melo couldn't dream of doing, actually play defense. Why does it matter how many points Patterson scores when PG and Westbrook can score plenty? Patterson is an upgrade defensively for the starting unit and Melo can boost the scoring of the bench, since their bench sucks.

It is not a matter of "holding the ball to long", it is a matter of spreading the offensive players around so they aren't being wasted and the bench suffers from not being able to score. Melo would help boost the bench's scoring and Patterson would give PG and Westbrook more room or operate.

PG is a better two way player than Melo, so it makes sense to use Melo as a scorer off the bench rather than have him in the starting lineup and hope he can do anything defensively. PG is solid on both ends, so it makes more sense to leave him starting. It makes perfect sense if you remove egos from the situation.

There is some sort of issue they should be winning more games that is the problem. Carmelo should be a 6th man because of his position and lack of bench help.

Hoopzilla wrote:

Rollie wrote:

Hoopzilla wrote:
Did you not see the laugh from Melo when a reporter asked if he would consider coming off the bench? It is that type of arrogance and over inflated sense of self that has plagued Melo his entire career. A lot of people always thought Melo should have been a 6th man for this team to be successful and they are still saying that is what may help fix this mess. Melo's reluctance to embrace that role, the same way D Wade has, would go a long way towards helping the Thunder. D Wade would have had a much better argument to continue starting, he has always been a starter on good teams, Melo is the one that thinks he is a juggernaut while playing for teams that can't make the playoffs. Melo is and always will be his own worst enemy, the fans, his teams and teammates are just victims to his arrogance.

How is Melo coming off the bench helping the Thunder? The plan all along was to run PG with the second unit. Besides, who replaces Melo in that lineup that would help the Thunder win? Patterson and his 8 points a game? Moving Melo to the bench is a lateral move, especially if he's on the floor with Westbrook.

There are three issues with the Thunder: Westbrook is scoring 10 points less than last year. His shooting percentage is bad. Second Andre Roberson messes up floor spacing because he can't shoot. Third they have no bench. Having Melo come off the bench with people that can't score doesn't solve anything because they would just double him.

Besides Melo is taking less shots than last year, so you can't say, "He's holding the ball too long."

Yes, Patterson and his 8 ppg replace Melo in the starting lineup. Melo can play with the scrubs on the second unit and take all the shots he wants. Patterson will stretch the floor with the starters and do something Melo couldn't dream of doing, actually play defense. Why does it matter how many points Patterson scores when PG and Westbrook can score plenty? Patterson is an upgrade defensively for the starting unit and Melo can boost the scoring of the bench, since their bench sucks.

It is not a matter of "holding the ball to long", it is a matter of spreading the offensive players around so they aren't being wasted and the bench suffers from not being able to score. Melo would help boost the bench's scoring and Patterson would give PG and Westbrook more room or operate.

PG is a better two way player than Melo, so it makes sense to use Melo as a scorer off the bench rather than have him in the starting lineup and hope he can do anything defensively. PG is solid on both ends, so it makes more sense to leave him starting. It makes perfect sense if you remove egos from the situation.

The spacing on the floor sucks because Roberson sucks. You can double without fear of getting burned. Look at the triple overtime game. He got a steal and had a fast break and didn't take the shot. If he has no confidence in himself why should I?

Melo coming off the bench does not work because the second unit is hot garbage. When the ball goes into the post he would get the double team with no one to kick it out to. And before you say, "He wouldn't pass the ball out of the double team" he HAS been passing on shots he would normally take.

If you want him to be part of the second unit, how about building a second unit around him that plays to his strengths? The Thunder lose leads when Donovan starts substituting and they can't keep up the scoring load and they are not effective defensively.

And as for the the Westbrook and PG scoring plenty comment. The fact is they haven't been. PG has been inconsistent and Westbrook's numbers are down as a whole. That comes from taking bad shots. A LOT of bad shots.

Rollie wrote:

Hoopzilla wrote:

Rollie wrote:
How is Melo coming off the bench helping the Thunder? The plan all along was to run PG with the second unit. Besides, who replaces Melo in that lineup that would help the Thunder win? Patterson and his 8 points a game? Moving Melo to the bench is a lateral move, especially if he's on the floor with Westbrook.

There are three issues with the Thunder: Westbrook is scoring 10 points less than last year. His shooting percentage is bad. Second Andre Roberson messes up floor spacing because he can't shoot. Third they have no bench. Having Melo come off the bench with people that can't score doesn't solve anything because they would just double him.

Besides Melo is taking less shots than last year, so you can't say, "He's holding the ball too long."

Yes, Patterson and his 8 ppg replace Melo in the starting lineup. Melo can play with the scrubs on the second unit and take all the shots he wants. Patterson will stretch the floor with the starters and do something Melo couldn't dream of doing, actually play defense. Why does it matter how many points Patterson scores when PG and Westbrook can score plenty? Patterson is an upgrade defensively for the starting unit and Melo can boost the scoring of the bench, since their bench sucks.

It is not a matter of "holding the ball to long", it is a matter of spreading the offensive players around so they aren't being wasted and the bench suffers from not being able to score. Melo would help boost the bench's scoring and Patterson would give PG and Westbrook more room or operate.

PG is a better two way player than Melo, so it makes sense to use Melo as a scorer off the bench rather than have him in the starting lineup and hope he can do anything defensively. PG is solid on both ends, so it makes more sense to leave him starting. It makes perfect sense if you remove egos from the situation.

The spacing on the floor sucks because Roberson sucks. You can double without fear of getting burned. Look at the triple overtime game. He got a steal and had a fast break and didn't take the shot. If he has no confidence in himself why should I?

Melo coming off the bench does not work because the second unit is hot garbage. When the ball goes into the post he would get the double team with no one to kick it out to. And before you say, "He wouldn't pass the ball out of the double team" he HAS been passing on shots he would normally take.

If you want him to be part of the second unit, how about building a second unit around him that plays to his strengths? The Thunder lose leads when Donovan starts substituting and they can't keep up the scoring load and they are not effective defensively.

And as for the the Westbrook and PG scoring plenty comment. The fact is they haven't been. PG has been inconsistent and Westbrook's numbers are down as a whole. That comes from taking bad shots. A LOT of bad shots.

The reason Melo is passing on shots he normally used to take, is because there are two better options on the floor to take those shots and he knows it.

The second unit would get a boost from Melo's offense and he would no longer be passing up shots he normally used to take, because he would be the best option to take the shot surrounded by bench players. If Patterson is on the floor with the starters, you can't double as easily, because Patterson is a very capable three point shooter. If Melo made the bench go from hot garbage to just bad defensively, that would be an upgrade. With a focal point scorer in Melo off the bench, the other bench players would find their roles a bit easier.

PG and Westbrook would become more productive without Melo starting as well, as they wouldn't have to try and find him shots too, they can just play off each other. In the second half when they are all going, you can mix them in with each other. All those "bad shots" can be dealt with when they can play their regular games and not have to try and overthink how to share the ball with three ball dominant players, because Melo would be on the bench waiting for his turn when the bench comes in. Again, it is really simple when egos are removed and you just do what is best for the team.

reporter: how would feel about coming of the bench
melo: lololol who, me? lolololo you're joking right, gone lost your mind

Hoopzilla wrote:

Rollie wrote:

Hoopzilla wrote:
Yes, Patterson and his 8 ppg replace Melo in the starting lineup. Melo can play with the scrubs on the second unit and take all the shots he wants. Patterson will stretch the floor with the starters and do something Melo couldn't dream of doing, actually play defense. Why does it matter how many points Patterson scores when PG and Westbrook can score plenty? Patterson is an upgrade defensively for the starting unit and Melo can boost the scoring of the bench, since their bench sucks.

It is not a matter of "holding the ball to long", it is a matter of spreading the offensive players around so they aren't being wasted and the bench suffers from not being able to score. Melo would help boost the bench's scoring and Patterson would give PG and Westbrook more room or operate.

PG is a better two way player than Melo, so it makes sense to use Melo as a scorer off the bench rather than have him in the starting lineup and hope he can do anything defensively. PG is solid on both ends, so it makes more sense to leave him starting. It makes perfect sense if you remove egos from the situation.

The spacing on the floor sucks because Roberson sucks. You can double without fear of getting burned. Look at the triple overtime game. He got a steal and had a fast break and didn't take the shot. If he has no confidence in himself why should I?

Melo coming off the bench does not work because the second unit is hot garbage. When the ball goes into the post he would get the double team with no one to kick it out to. And before you say, "He wouldn't pass the ball out of the double team" he HAS been passing on shots he would normally take.

If you want him to be part of the second unit, how about building a second unit around him that plays to his strengths? The Thunder lose leads when Donovan starts substituting and they can't keep up the scoring load and they are not effective defensively.

And as for the the Westbrook and PG scoring plenty comment. The fact is they haven't been. PG has been inconsistent and Westbrook's numbers are down as a whole. That comes from taking bad shots. A LOT of bad shots.

The reason Melo is passing on shots he normally used to take, is because there are two better options on the floor to take those shots and he knows it.

The second unit would get a boost from Melo's offense and he would no longer be passing up shots he normally used to take, because he would be the best option to take the shot surrounded by bench players. If Patterson is on the floor with the starters, you can't double as easily, because Patterson is a very capable three point shooter. If Melo made the bench go from hot garbage to just bad defensively, that would be an upgrade. With a focal point scorer in Melo off the bench, the other bench players would find their roles a bit easier.

PG and Westbrook would become more productive without Melo starting as well, as they wouldn't have to try and find him shots too, they can just play off each other. In the second half when they are all going, you can mix them in with each other. All those "bad shots" can be dealt with when they can play their regular games and not have to try and overthink how to share the ball with three ball dominant players, because Melo would be on the bench waiting for his turn when the bench comes in. Again, it is really simple when egos are removed and you just do what is best for the team.

Once again, it's not an ego thing. It doesn't help the team. You make the starting you make the bench stronger, but the starting 5 weaker.

You can fix the starting 5 problem by putting PG at the 2, Melo at the 3 and Patterson at the 4. But the bench is still weak as hell.

We'll just agree to disagree.

Rollie wrote:

Hoopzilla wrote:

Rollie wrote:
The spacing on the floor sucks because Roberson sucks. You can double without fear of getting burned. Look at the triple overtime game. He got a steal and had a fast break and didn't take the shot. If he has no confidence in himself why should I?

Melo coming off the bench does not work because the second unit is hot garbage. When the ball goes into the post he would get the double team with no one to kick it out to. And before you say, "He wouldn't pass the ball out of the double team" he HAS been passing on shots he would normally take.

If you want him to be part of the second unit, how about building a second unit around him that plays to his strengths? The Thunder lose leads when Donovan starts substituting and they can't keep up the scoring load and they are not effective defensively.

And as for the the Westbrook and PG scoring plenty comment. The fact is they haven't been. PG has been inconsistent and Westbrook's numbers are down as a whole. That comes from taking bad shots. A LOT of bad shots.

The reason Melo is passing on shots he normally used to take, is because there are two better options on the floor to take those shots and he knows it.

The second unit would get a boost from Melo's offense and he would no longer be passing up shots he normally used to take, because he would be the best option to take the shot surrounded by bench players. If Patterson is on the floor with the starters, you can't double as easily, because Patterson is a very capable three point shooter. If Melo made the bench go from hot garbage to just bad defensively, that would be an upgrade. With a focal point scorer in Melo off the bench, the other bench players would find their roles a bit easier.

PG and Westbrook would become more productive without Melo starting as well, as they wouldn't have to try and find him shots too, they can just play off each other. In the second half when they are all going, you can mix them in with each other. All those "bad shots" can be dealt with when they can play their regular games and not have to try and overthink how to share the ball with three ball dominant players, because Melo would be on the bench waiting for his turn when the bench comes in. Again, it is really simple when egos are removed and you just do what is best for the team.

Once again, it's not an ego thing. It doesn't help the team. You make the starting you make the bench stronger, but the starting 5 weaker.

You can fix the starting 5 problem by putting PG at the 2, Melo at the 3 and Patterson at the 4. But the bench is still weak as hell.

We'll just agree to disagree.

Switching Patterson and Melo improves both the starting unit and the bench, they both get a boost. The starting lineup gets a floor stretching power forward that can play adequate defense in Patterson. Just because he doesn't get 20 ppg doesn't mean he can't be an upgrade, he fits better with the starting unit than Melo does.

Melo will boost the bench by giving them a reliable iso scorer and the rest of the bench can figure out how to play off of him.

But, in the end it is all about ego because Melo would never ever agree to it.

We can agree to disagree on this one, sure. I can rest easy knowing most of the basketball community is one my side knowing it would be best for Melo to come off the bench but his ego simply won't let him do it.

If it is not an ego thing, as you continue to assert, please show me one clip of Melo saying he would be willing to do whatever it takes for the team to turn it around. Don't worry, I'll wait. If you want to see my proof that Melo will never ever agree to it because his giant ego won't let him, here is just one of many examples:

Hoopzilla is spot on there.

And Melo isn't a top 3 player on the team.