This past summer, Carmelo Anthony resisted the temptation to join the Bulls and instead re-signed with the Knicks, a move that cast him as greedy to his critics and perhaps placed him in basketball purgatory for at least one year, Michael Lee of The Washington Post writes. By taking the deal that paid him nearly $50MM more than Chicago could offer to return to New York, Anthony made a long-term business decision over a logical basketball one, Lee adds. “Regardless of what happened, it would all come down to the money. That’s just the life we live. You can’t escape that,” said Anthony, who admits that his attitude in approaching previous contracts was “don’t leave no money on the table.”
Here’s more out of the Atlantic Division:
- Trading Rajon Rondo was the right move for the Celtics, but GM Danny Ainge waited too long to make a deal, which likely reduced the return that Boston received for the point guard, Julian Edlow of WEEI 93.7 FM opines. Edlow believes it would have been better for the Celtics to have traded Rondo this summer after they struck out in their attempts to add a star like Kevin Love to play alongside him.
- There has been much written about the Knicks‘ insistence on forcing the use of triangle offense on their players as a big reason for the team’s woes, but the reality is that New York simply does not have the talent to compete this season, Howard Beck of Bleacher Report writes.
- Jarrett Jack‘s playing style doesn’t mesh well with that of the Nets, a situation that dealing Jorge Gutierrez to the Sixers has amplified, Robert Windrem of Nets Daily notes. Brooklyn has no other natural point guards besides Jack on its roster to back up Deron Williams, which could force the front office to sign or trade for a pass-first point man prior to the trade deadline, Windrem adds.