We all know earlier this summer any trade for Carmelo Anthony between the Nets and Denver centered around rookie Derrick Favors. With the rookie struggling in the preseason, there was talk that Denver was becoming skittish, but with Favors off to a very strong start, people are starting to ask more if the Nets should be trading him.
Al Iannazzone reports this morning that the Nets would STILL trade Favors for ‘Melo, but Avery Johnson is ecstatic with the rook:
“We look at him and [Brook] Lopez being a stud [power forward] and [center] as we move along,” Johnson said. “If we look into our crystal ball, we like what we see.”
Over at Whoop De Damned Do, Victor Nash explores the question from the fan’s perspective. Citing some stats, Nash points out something very interesting about Carmelo the “superstar”:
However, one of the real kickers to this deal is Carmelo’s offensive efficiency rating. Melo has always been lauded as a great offensive talent that is a below average defender to say the least. However, his efficiency rating of 107 is almost identical to the league average. That doesn’t exactly scream out great offensive talent to me.
I’m with Nash here, and I get the sense from reading more of the message boards and blogs around the Internet, that we’re not alone. Anthony is just not good enough to sacrifice the potential talent of Favors. And I think most fans are happy to watch this team grow together, speed bumps like the last three games and all. At this point, I see Billy King’s (and Mikhail Prokhorov and Bret Yormark’s?) insistence on keeping Favors on the table for ‘Melo being all about marketing and spiting the Knicks, who will likely end up with ‘Melo if he doesn’t go to the Nets. Marketing and spite are not worthwhile reasons for roster moves. Sorry guys.
Let me make this clear and on the record: do not trade for Favors for ‘Melo. Just don’t. It will be a mistake. Even if Favors never reaches his upside, Anthony is not enough of a difference maker. It makes me think less and less of this new front office and this ownership which I think Nets fans have been a little too quick to praise, myself included, that this deal is even still on the table.
