The Bulls Next Move

 

Carmelo Anthony and the Denver Nuggets are headed towards a divorce. If the Bulls are serious about being a title contender, they need to try and pry Melo from Denver.

The summer of 2010 didn’t live up to what the Bulls or their fans had dreamed of. Sure the team got better, but it’s similar to going out drinking with the guys, looking to hookup with a beautiful woman(a 10 if you will) only to go home disappointed. Of course you dream big before the night begins, but the odds are you won’t do any better than a 7 depending on how drunk you get said woman. If you’re like some of my friends, a 7 is considered a home run, but alas ,I digress. That’s how the Bulls summer went. They scored a 7 with the additions of Carlos Boozer, Kyle Korver, Ronnie Brewer, and C.J. Watson. Good? Yes, but not the 10 fans had hoped for. However, a breaking development has happened that can change the Bulls off-season grade, put them on par with the Miami Heat, and put them in position to win the franchise’s 7th NBA championship.
Superstar small forward ,Carmelo Anthony, reportedly wants out of Denver. He has yet to sign the teams 3 year $65 million extension, and won't unless it's part of a sign and trade that gets him out of Denver. The team’s front office has gone through major changes this summer with the departures of executives Mark Warkentien and Rex Chapman. Point guard Chauncey Billups, is 34 and has begun to show his age late in the last two post seasons. Finally, Nuggets owner, Stan Kroenke is on record saying he will not go through what Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert just went through with that 6′8” piece of garbage this summer. It’s not often that franchise players get traded in the NBA, but Carmelo sees that the Nuggets window has closed and wants to move onto a contending team, like his team USA crew just did in Miami. Melo will have options, but if he wants to compete for a title, he needs to think about the Chicago Bulls.
This story hasn’t been out for 24 hours, yet all of the media morons already have Carmelo going to the Knicks. I know he’s from the area, and his wife La La Vasquez is from Brooklyn, so the immediate reaction is Carmelo will end up in New York. I wish the media would wake up and realize that guys don’t want any part of the Knicks or James Dolan. Maybe Melo is different and wants to go to the city where the streets will make you feel brand knew and the lights will inspire you, but he wouldn’t win. This is the team who’s owner who nearly brought back Isiah Thomas for Christ’s sake. If you’ve been reading me for the past several months ,you know I love giving it to the Knicks. They were laughed at in free agency this summer despite signing Amare Stoudemire. You know why they got Amare? Because they were the only team that didn’t include minutes clauses in his contract because of his surgically repaired knee. His knee is as sound as the Jersey Shore relationship of Sammie and Ronnie. That is the only reason he went there. NBA players don’t like the media attention in NYC and this is on top of the fact that the team still sucks. Last I checked, Amare didn’t bring Steve Nash with him, so do you think Tony Douglas gets Carmelo excited? It shouldn’t. Neither should the fact that Mr. $100 Million is going to put up David Lee numbers on a team that will again miss the playoffs. Melo and Amare together is not a title team, and it wouldn’t beat the Heat, Celtics, Magic, or Bulls in a series. Knicks fans and the New York media(I'm looking at you Ian O'Connor and Alan Hahn. They are as objective as boxing judges...It’s disturbing) want the team to trade for Tony Parker…that sounds great until you realize the Spurs took one look at that piss poor squad and said,um….no thank you, we’re good.

Carmelo Anthony would instantly make the Bulls title contenders. If he wants to beat his boys in Miami, the Bulls give him the best opportunity.

So, who has the the combination of players and picks to snag Melo from Denver? You guessed it, DA Bulls. The Bulls could offer Luol Deng, Taj Gibson, James Johnson, and 1st round picks. Unlike the Knicks, the Bulls actually have their draft picks the next couple of years. And, thanks to Michael Jordan, they have a future 1st from the Tyrus Thomas trade. John Paxson recently said he thought for a short time during free agency that the Bulls had a shot at LeBron James and Dwyane Wade. The fact they went after both guys, despite already having Derrick Rose on the roster, shows they are serious about getting back to title contention. I would hate to throw Joakim Noah in a Melo trade, but I would do it if I had to.
As solid as the Bulls summer moves were, they still need one more guy to get them over the top. I compare them now to the ‘94 Bulls. They have their one unquestioned star(Derrick Rose now, Scottie Pippen in ‘94), a deep and talented roster, a good coach and a team that will fight every night. The ‘94 Bulls were screwed out of a trip to the conference finals thanks to Hue Hollins, but it’s unlikely they would have beaten the Olajuwon Rockets in the finals. This team is much improved, but it’s still not better than Miami, Boston, or Orlando in the east. Enter Carmelo…..
If the Bulls can add Carmelo to this team? Lookout. When you analyze the league, you see that what happened this summer is a mirage. What happened with LeBron is extremely rare. When you have to go back to the summer of ‘96(Shaq leaving Orlando for L.A.) to find the last superstar to leave his team, you know it’s a rarity. Going forward, who would the Bulls get to put them over the hump? Kevin Durant just signed a 5 year extension in OKC, Chris Paul and Deron Williams could both be traded, but I think the Bulls are pretty well set at the point. They won’t be bad enough to get lucky in the lottery again. How do they get over the hump? They get on the phone with Stan Kroenke and strike before Donnie Walsh and the Knicks try to. If Melo is serious about competing for championships, how can he not look at the Bulls? He isn’t a ball dominant player, which means he’d fit perfectly with Derrick Rose. Give me a lineup of Rose, Brewer, Melo, Boozer, and Noah and I’ll go “to war” vs Miami as Rose said last week. The Bulls may have settled on a 7 in free agency, but they are getting another opportunity to score big. Think of it as an after party in Vegas where the 10’s will all be hanging out. The 10 is Carmelo Anthony, and he’s officially available. A 7 is nice, but why not dream big? Why does he have to go to the concrete jungle? The night and off-season are still young. Make the call Pax.