On Wednesday, the league experienced it’s first mega trade when the Los Angeles Clippers traded Chris Paul to the Houston Rockets. Carmelo Anthony could be next to land in Houston as well.
With Chris Paul now in Houston, it has many in the league wondering what could be for the Rockets with CP3 now teaming up with James Harden. But the Rockets may not be done yet, as Tim McMahon of ESPN has reported that Houston could me making a move for another superstar.
McMahon cites both Paul George and Carmelo Anthony as players that the Houston Rockets have their sights on. Both make sense for Houston given the fact that they are one of the top teams in the Western Conference and are in a win-now stage.
However, one of them makes more sense for Houston than the other. Carmelo Anthony makes more sense for Houston than Paul George does.
Paul George reportedly would want to play long-term with the Cleveland Cavaliers if LeBron James stays long-term, which means deep down, Paul George may have his eyes on playing in Cleveland.
Carmelo Anthony, on the other hand, hasn’t exactly been too keen on leaving New York unless it was to play in certain areas. The reports have been that if the New York Knicks bought out Carmelo, then he would join the Cleveland Cavaliers to play alongside LeBron. Other reports have said that he was open to being traded last year to the Los Angeles Clippers to play alongside his other friend in Chris Paul.
Now that Paul is no longer on the Clippers and now on the Rockets, that might shift Carmelo’s interests and may make him more open to being traded to Houston. The Knicks have been hesitant on buying out Carmelo because they want to get something for him in a potential trade.
Now that Phil Jackson has been removed as the Knicks president, Carmelo might be able to work out something with James Dolan and engineer a potential move to Houston if he wants to play with Chris Paul. Or, if the next Knicks president wants to make that move themselves, they could look to alter the roster to how they want and Carmelo being traded may be moved as well.
A roster of James Harden, Chris Paul, and Carmelo Anthony would certainly increase the Rockets chances of competing in the Western Conference and try to tame the Golden State Warriors, who are once again the reigning NBA Champions. Over the last three years, the Warriors have been the team to represent the Western Conference in the NBA Finals and most teams haven’t come close to challenging them, especially this past year.
Adding Chris Paul helps the Houston Rockets. It just might help improve the odds of trying to land Carmelo Anthony from the Knicks as well.