Carmelo and the Nuggets

Yesterday, supposedly the Nets killed talks with the Nuggets about Carmelo being traded. This has been drama hanging over the team since late last year. Carmelo's contract ends this summer and he has not accepted any offers from the team. Despite being the most valuable player, he wants to leave.

I'm not surprised and I didn't think he'd be here this long. My thought was that he would want to go to a bigger city at some point and play there. My thought was he'd go to whoever paid him the most money, but that doesn't appear to be the case.

Supposedly Carmelo or some of his people announced that he wanted to go to the Knicks. Doing that publicly is a problem for the Nuggets because it takes away their leverage. If only the Knicks are a trade possibility, they can hold out for a better Knick deal, which implies a worse Nuggets deal.

As a Nuggets fan, I think that this stinks for the team. It's a bit of a mess and I think that the team does need a rebuild, sending away a number of players and remaking the team. Chauncey is a little old, though he might take a little less money and he is a good mentor for this year, and maybe next. Nene is solid, but not a guy that will help you win and even with Birdman, I think we would be better off trying to get a better low post guy. I love Lawson, but 'Melo is too lazy. No defense, and that's an issue. He's got tremendous talent, and can score with anyone, but with him a liability on the defense, and Birdman a liability on the offense, the team is mismatched against many other West teams.

At the same time, I respect Carmelo for wanting to go live and play where he wants to. He's earned that and a championship is not the ultimate goal at the expense of everything else. I hope he tries harder, learns to make more effort for defense and tries to win. But going to live your life where you want is important, and if he's willing to sacrifice some money to do so, more power to him.