The Carmelo Anthony experiment in Oklahoma City was, by all measures, a nightmare.
Not only did the team play better in their playoff series with the Jazz when Melo was on the bench, but another first-round exit in the postseason is not going to go over well with Russell Westbrook and the team’s brass.
But it’s unfair for Melo to take the lion’s share of the blame, as it was the team’s decision to bring him and take on his ridiculous contract — which warranted them paying him over $26 million for the season. Not only that, Anthony stated on Monday that the team never
“The player that they wanted me to be and needed me to be was for the sake of this season…Everything was just thrown together, and it wasn’t anything that was planned out,” Anthony said, via Fred Katz of the Norman Transcript. “It wasn’t no strategy to me being here, me being a part of the actual system and what type of player and things like that.
“As far as being effective as that type of player, I don’t think I can be effective as that type of player. I think I was willing to accept that challenge and that role, but I think I bring a little bit more to the game as far as being more knowledgeable and what I still can do as a basketball player.”
Anthony also stated that coming off the bench is out of the question, so it’s hard to see the team retaining him. He holds a $27.9 million early termination option for 2018-19, so he could potentially decline it and sign elsewhere. It’s hard to see him turning that amount of money down, though, so maybe a trade to the right suitor (that will pay him what he believes he’s worth) could be the best option for him and the team going forward.
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