Carmelo Anthony Thread (Merging)

[SpeedyG]

Hard to say what kind of tone he had when he said it. "Do your job" can be motivating if said in the right tone.

[vincecarter4pres]

Avery is right though...They are all grown ups, they can't not show up to work and perform bad just because they might get sent somewhere else. Besides, they are getting payed millions of dollars. They should be damn happy to even be in the league at all. Avery seems like a genuine and nice guy though, I don't know why so many people here have a problem with him. A coach can only do so much for a team.

I don't think I've ever heard someone refer to Avery as genuine and a nice guy.

How would you feel if for the last 4 months every time you came to work they kept talking about relocating you to somewhere you didn't necessarily want to go?

Would it effect your work performance?

Would you be focused?

Money is money and all and they should be grateful to be able to do this for a living and make insane amounts of money, but sometimes people forget that players are human. There's a disconnect between them on the court and real life.

These people have family and friends, roots in the community, favorite restaurants, favorite places, properties and business investments.

I don't feel bad for them in any means and I'm sure most of them are secretly thrilled to be off this god awful team, but emotion and thought process, routine and daily life is just that.

To think it doesn't effect them is ignorant. They are not robots.

On the same hand that some maybe thrilled to be dealt, they would probably all love to be the ones left on the roster to be a meaningful part of the turnaround.

[blindchicken11]

Yeah it probably has effected them for the past couple months. I'm just saying I don't think one quote by Avery was the breaking point. For me, if people had been talking about moving me for months I would just want it over with at this point. I would probably be more annoyed then sad but who knows.

[vincecarter4pres]

Yeah it probably has effected them for the past couple months. I'm just saying I don't think one quote by Avery was the breaking point. For me, if people had been talking about moving me for months I would just want it over with at this point. I would probably be more annoyed then sad but who knows.

Yeah I could agree with this, but it doesn't change the fact Avery's a dick.

I would imagine they are more annoyed then sad as well, but that still has to affect your performance, attitude and cohesion, probably even more so cause you aren't especially motivated.

[JoseRizal]

Ujiri us one greedy bastard...

[Jersey Generals]

I'm really starting to think that perhaps the know something about Melo that the Nets don't. After all, the last three or so supposed trades have been stopped by who? Denver. Maybe they're stalling for a reason, and throwing out all these demands that they don't expect the Nets to meet, and when the Nets do meet them, they have to pull back to stall for more time.

[vincecarter4pres]

I'm really starting to think that perhaps the know something about Melo that the Nets don't. After all, the last three or so supposed trades have been stopped by who? Denver. Maybe they're stalling for a reason, and throwing out all these demands that they don't expect the Nets to meet, and when the Nets do meet them, they have to pull back to stall for more time.

You know, not for nothing, that's a little out there, but it makes a ton of sense.

[SpeedyG]

I'm really starting to think that perhaps the know something about Melo that the Nets don't. After all, the last three or so supposed trades have been stopped by who? Denver. Maybe they're stalling for a reason, and throwing out all these demands that they don't expect the Nets to meet, and when the Nets do meet them, they have to pull back to stall for more time.

Which is?

[jzmagik]

I'm really starting to think that perhaps the know something about Melo that the Nets don't. After all, the last three or so supposed trades have been stopped by who? Denver. Maybe they're stalling for a reason, and throwing out all these demands that they don't expect the Nets to meet, and when the Nets do meet them, they have to pull back to stall for more time.

Which is?

It's possible that Denver wants us to lose as many games as possible before they pull the trade at the deadline so that the lottery pick value increases. And if thats what they are indeed doing, then screw those greedy fools and watch them lose Melo for nothing in FA.

[vincecarter4pres]

I'm really starting to think that perhaps the know something about Melo that the Nets don't. After all, the last three or so supposed trades have been stopped by who? Denver. Maybe they're stalling for a reason, and throwing out all these demands that they don't expect the Nets to meet, and when the Nets do meet them, they have to pull back to stall for more time.

Which is?

It's possible that Denver wants us to lose as many games as possible before they pull the trade at the deadline so that the lottery pick value increases. And if thats what they are indeed doing, then screw those greedy fools and watch them lose Melo for nothing in FA.

No, I'm pretty sure he's suggesting Melo and/or Chauncey doesn't want to come to NJ and they know it, so they're trying to keep one upping the deal til we pull out so it looks like it was our fault when it doesn't happen, giving them more time to work out another deal with a different team or make it look like their hand was forced when they deal him to the Knix for Gallo/Curry/TD/2014 1st.

They're probably also trying their hardest to get him to accept his fate and find a 4th or 5th team with an impact player to come here that would appease him.

[NyCeEvO]

I'm really starting to think that perhaps the know something about Melo that the Nets don't. After all, the last three or so supposed trades have been stopped by who? Denver. Maybe they're stalling for a reason, and throwing out all these demands that they don't expect the Nets to meet, and when the Nets do meet them, they have to pull back to stall for more time.

Well, apparently the Nets are done meeting demands. This last stoppage is mostly Melo's doing though. Once he has his meeting with management, that's probably when things will progress. In that meeting, we should expect for Denver to give Melo one final chance to accept the extension. If he does, then the shenanigans are done. If not, Melo will be in a tricky position.

Masai and Kroenke aren't going to do everything Melo wants since he's rejecting to stay with his team. They're already doing a lot for him by trying to get Billups and Hamilton to go with him. He can't just say let me become a free agent and sign with the Knicks nor can he say "ok, if you send me to NJ, can you call NOH to get Paul?" He's between a rock and a hard place. We'll see what comes out of it.

[SpeedyG]

This makes absolutely no sense though, and a complete waste of time for everyone involved. And a complete and utter failure by the Nets should that be the case. If there are no interests from Melo (which we SHOULD know given we are talking about trading for him), then this discussion should have been over a loooooong time ago.

[vincecarter4pres]

This makes absolutely no sense though, and a complete waste of time for everyone involved. And a complete and utter failure by the Nets should that be the case. If there are no interests from Melo (which we SHOULD know given we are talking about trading for him), then this discussion should have been over a loooooong time ago.

Technically we aren't allowed to talk to Melo or his agent until a deal is agreed upon in principal, it would be tampering.

[vincecarter4pres]

Masai and Kroenke aren't going to do everything Melo wants since he's rejecting to stay with his team. They're already doing a lot for him by trying to get Billups and Hamilton to go with him. He can't just say let me become a free agent and sign with the Knicks nor can he say "ok, if you send me to NJ, can you call NOH to get Paul?" He's between a rock and a hard place. We'll see what comes out of it.

Come on dog, you're better then that!

They don't give a flying squirrel **** about making Melo happy post Denver, they are only concerned because that's the only way they can get this haul for him.

If they don't pull this deal off they're going to be forced to take some lame proposal from a contender looking to rent him with no extension or the Knix offer, which they publicly have stated numerous times they aren't enamored with in the slightest.

This is not a friendly break up, this is War of the Roses.

The absolute only reason Melo is in any danger of being the loser is the new CBA may very well lower salary, but A) I don't think the reductions will be nearly as dramatic as some are making it, and B) I think big name stars will still be paid only slightly less, but the MLE will probably decrease, as will the first contracts after rookie deals and owners will be more cautious about handing role players big contracts and possibly the set level vet minimum deals will increase for players with a certain amount of experience.

[Netaman]

That makes no sense only because it sets them up to look bad. If they have 2 trades fall through with the Nets that would bring back Favors, cap space, and picks, and potentially Harris, but then settle for something lesser, they look (Please Use More Appropriate Word). Everyone knows our front office is desperate for Melo. Everyone knows the Nets would have agreed to a trade yesterday. If the Nuggs get a penny less then what we've offered or even better loose Melo for nothing in the offseason, Masai will be a laughing stock.

People are giving him credit now only because they know how desperate our FO is. If he loses this deal at the expense of the draft pick moving up or down a few spots then he is going to end up looking very bad when Melo signs in NY.

[vincecarter4pres]

That makes no sense only because it sets them up to look bad.

They've already accomplished this.

If they have 2 trades fall through with the Nets that would bring back Favors, cap space, and picks, and potentially Harris, but then settle for something lesser, they look (Please Use More Appropriate Word).

So doesn't this seem suspicious then?

Everyone knows our front office is desperate for Melo. Everyone knows the Nets would have agreed to a trade yesterday.

So again, doesn't this seem even more suspicious?

If the Nuggs get a penny less then what we've offered or even better loose Melo for nothing in the offseason, Masai will be a laughing stock.

Not after Melo's press conference at his new destination when he diplomatically explains that he was only somewhat aware of the NJ deal, but wasn't sure that he would sign there.

People are giving him credit now only because they know how desperate our FO is. If he loses this deal at the expense of the draft pick moving up or down a few spots then he is going to end up looking very bad when Melo signs in NY.

I don't think anyone is giving him credit except delusional Nuggets homers.

Everyone else thinks he's a greedy, green idiot that's about to get his bluff called and get burnt.


So thinking this one over from start to finish, doesn't it at least make a decent amount of sense that Denver knows Melo is not going to sign off on NJ with nothing more then Rip and Chauncey coming here, so they're stalling in order to find a different star to pair with him here and convince him and at worst they make it seem like it was mainly our fault for the deal falling through, while they attempt to drive up the price on all the crappy deals that contenders are offering right now?

I mean think about it... If they know this deal is D.O.A., they can be trying to squeeze the most out of teams like Dallas, San An and Utah before they fully realize what's up...

[Netaman]

Anything is possible, I just think they think they have us over a barrel and he's trying to get every last thing he can. We say yes to something and then he says, well maybe we can get 1 better pick. Maybe we can ditch 1 last contract. Maybe we can change 1 more little term because they aren't going to give up Carmelo over "X". We delay another 2 weeks, they pile up 5 more losses, our pick is 5 spots lower in the lottery.

Based on historical perspectives and the NBA landscape I think that's exceedingly shortsighted view and if Rod was our GM he would have already taken Masai's lunch money and told him to go kick rocks. It has been 5 months now, has any other remotely practical fallback option come to fruition? He has zero leverage outside of our reeking desperation - which will very abruptly turn to bitter hostility if he doesn't watch out.

If he's considering shipping Melo to a contender for less of a return just to screw him out of $ then he is an even worse GM then it seems. I'm sure Carmelo only making $16 mil will make Denver fans feel a lot better while their watching JR Smith and Al Harrington launch 3's straight into the lottery. George Karl will be out the door before Memorial Day. And they will have played themselves with 3/4's of a season of Melo right out of the lottery to boot.

You know how fans like ourselves are willing to wish away seasons in favor of a better future? (e.g. tank for 2 years and then we will have cap space) - that's fine because we're fans but in reality 90% of the reason why we're so in favor of it is because it's easy for us. As much as we might care about the team it's not our life. We don't have to deal with the bowels of being terrible day in and day out, not to mention our professional reputations being staked into that. Almost all executives in this league have been there at one time or another in their careers and that is why so very few are secure enough to go through that process willingly. Right now Masai is making it abundantly clear that he's not ready for that cycle that is quickly approaching his horizon.

Did Rod want to trade J Kidd? I doubt it. We might have even played a lot better the last few years if we never did that trade. When you look back at it we didn't really get anything that great out of it. Basically Harris. Rod made that trade because he knew he wasn't getting a few years out of JKidd so he had to take a shot at getting as many resources as possible bc of the cycle we were entering. He also knew how volatile the NBA is and when he had a deal he took it.

Honestly the most surprising thing out of all of this is that Detroit isn't pushing harder because they are getting the steal of all steals. They suck with or without Rip. He is basically their Outlaw. And they get to cash him in just for playing.

[vincecarter4pres]

If he's considering shipping Melo to a contender for less of a return just to screw him out of $ then he is an even worse GM then it seems.

Agree with all the other points you made in your post, but I just wanted to clarify this one.

This isn't what I was inferring that Ujiri is doing.

What I was saying is if he already knows Melo won't come here if Rip and Chauncey are the main pieces that will surround him, he's still keeping up the facade so all the contenders looking to rent him will make their last ditch efforts, which would be increased to the max they have to offer period because if these contenders' GM's aren't aware yet that Melo won't come to Jersey, they are going to throw their best offer out there swinging for the proverbial fences, in other words giving it one last shot.

I'm not saying Ujiri would do this to spite Melo, I'm saying he would do this because our offer would be off the table and they don't like the Knicks offer, so his hand is forced to deal with a contending team and he wants to pump up the return as much as absolutely possible before the league finds out Melo won't come here and they start offering complete junk because Denver has exasperated all leverage, which they really never had much of to begin with.

He can't exactly go out and solicit Melo, he needs the other teams to make him offers, or else he loses a ton of ground.

The funny part is, if a contender such as Dallas, San An or maybe Chicago gets their hands on him, he may ironically just extend with them because he likes the new team and city so much and wants his money by hook or by crook.

[mercury]

You know if this deal goes through, I'm pretty sure Billups would be pissed at Melo for making him leave his hometown of Denver.

Billups is as mellow as they come. He has been traded what 8 times? He knows it's a business. Theu don't call him "smooth" for no reason!

...ok I believe you.

Melo says he feels bad for CB (a Denver lifer) however CB stands to gain 11M with this deal... don't feel sorry for him... even though

[Netaman]

If he's considering shipping Melo to a contender for less of a return just to screw him out of $ then he is an even worse GM then it seems.

Agree with all the other points you made in your post, but I just wanted to clarify this one.

This isn't what I was inferring that Ujiri is doing.

What I was saying is if he already knows Melo won't come here if Rip and Chauncey are the main pieces that will surround him, he's still keeping up the facade so all the contenders looking to rent him will make their last ditch efforts, which would be increased to the max they have to offer period because if these contenders' GM's aren't aware yet that Melo won't come to Jersey, they are going to throw their best offer out there swinging for the proverbial fences, in other words giving it one last shot.

I'm not saying Ujiri would do this to spite Melo, I'm saying he would do this because our offer would be off the table and they don't like the Knicks offer, so his hand is forced to deal with a contending team and he wants to pump up the return as much as absolutely possible before the league finds out Melo won't come here and they start offering complete junk because Denver has exasperated all leverage, which they really never had much of to begin with.

He can't exactly go out and solicit Melo, he needs the other teams to make him offers, or else he loses a ton of ground.

The funny part is, if a contender such as Dallas, San An or maybe Chicago gets their hands on him, he may ironically just extend with them because he likes the new team and city so much and wants his money by hook or by crook.

Oh I know you didn't infer that. I was basically surmising that (Dallas/Chi/Orl) as his only fall back plan if our deal falls through since no bad team is trading for him without an extension, and it seems the Knicks/Nets are the only chance for that now.

Either way it's probably moot because Carmelo wants his $. Leon Rose has got to be pissed as a **** since this 1 deal can help 2 of his clients (maybe 3) soooooooooo much. I think Masai is really staring down the barrel of a gun bc if he continues to stand in the way of what Carmelo wants so blatantly, Melo is going to start getting nasty. It's already started with Billups and the 'headache'. That **** is going to start imploding soon, I just hope King has the balls to stare it down.

Here is our offer. Every week you **** around I'm pulling picks, and starting with the higher ones. If you want to wait until the deadline, good for you, I'll make you the best offer but not a cent less. If you get a better offer all the power to you. Sorry detroit, you almost won the lottery. Sucks to be you. You too Leon.