Chapman: Carmelo Anthony perfect fit for Bulls
By JOSH CHAPMAN
ISL Correspondent
Carmelo Anthony is without a doubt the crown jewel of this free agent crop.
One of the most talented scorers in the game today – and possibly in the history of the game – is ready to turn a contender into title favorites. He has the choice of staying in New York and getting another year and more money, joining forces with Kobe Bryant out West, or heading to Chicago to create a new Big 3 of himself, Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah. But the question, assuming he decides to join the Bulls, is how would his game fit with the Bulls? And not just his offensive skillset, but his complete game? Let’s take a look.
Tangibles: Carmelo Anthony stands 6’8”, weighing 235 pounds. He would be firmly entrenched in the small forward position in the Bulls lineup, occasionally playing power forward to create mismatches/spell Taj Gibson. He has the frame to be a dominant rebounder, a mismatch on the offensive end (which he is) and an above-average defender.
Intangibles: Carmelo has grown immensely since the move to New York. He is no longer the pouting, immature kid he was when he first entered the league. He’s become much more of a leader, calling out his teammates on the court when they do something wrong and taking the brunt of the blame in losses. He’s been relatively healthy, with only minor injuries to slow him, including a shoulder injury that plagued him earlier in the year. Off the court, Melo is a leader as well with his charity work. A quote from his charity website, “In addition to his status as a superstar on the basketball court, Carmelo excels off the court in his efforts to improve communities and positively impact the way of life for disadvantaged children and families through his philanthropic efforts. The Giving Back Fund is the premier philanthropic resource for the sports and entertainment communities.” Carmelo Anthony off the court would be a perfect fit on the southwest side of Chicago.
Offense: This is Carmelo’s bread and butter. Offensively, he’s as dynamic as they come, apart from Kevin Durant. Pulling up, on the block, spotting up…it really doesn’t matter to Carmelo. He shot 40.2% from 3, 45.2% from the field and 84.8% from the charity stripe. He shot a true shooting percentage (which takes into account 3-point percentage, 2-point percentage and free throw percentage) of 56.1%. Paul George, by comparison, shot 55.5% this year. Melo is best on the block, where he can use either his weight or speed advantage, or pulling up in transition. He got much better at shooting from deep this season, which would work well with the Bulls, who shot an abysmal 34.8%. Carmelo is a surprisingly good offensive rebounder, pulling down 1.8 per game or 5.8% of available offensive rebounds when he was on the floor, per advanced stats. By comparison, LeBron averaged 1.1 per game, or 4.5% of available offensive rebounds when he was on the floor. There’s no doubting Carmelo’s offensive prowess.
Defense: Here’s where perception doesn’t quite meet reality. Carmelo is labeled as a horrible defender and a total liability. That’s not the case, however. Carmelo is actually a decent on-ball defender and while he’ll allow guys to get past him, he’ll actually force the offensive player to pass out of the possession. Granted he’s not a shut-down defender and will take off more plays than you would like. But when he played for Team USA (where Thibodeau was an assistant coach), ‘Melo was not only engaged and active, he was a forceful defender. He had to be, with guys like LeBron James, Kobe Bryant and Chris Paul holding him accountable. Now I know what you’re saying: it’s only the Olympics and while international competition has certainly gotten better, it’s not NBA level competition. Okay, I see your point. But consider this: Carmelo’s defensive rebounding percentage was 19.4%, meaning he got 19.4% of the available defensive rebounds. By comparison, LeBron James’s was 20.8%. Now while rebounds don’t equal great defense, it does show the level of hustle and competiveness that ‘Melo has. While he’s not the best defender in the world, he has some potential to be an average to above-average defender.
Age factor: Anthony is 29 years old, which means that this is likely his last maximum contract opportunity. That would make it seem more likely that he would stay in New York. However, he’s at a stage where he’s seen four of the other first five draft picks from his class, including Darko Miličić, has won a ring. That has to hurt ‘Melo and his ego, and he’s stated numerous times that he wants to win a ring and would be willing to take less money to do so. It seems in the cards that Carmelo is leaving New York for a championship contender.
Role: For Carmelo, he couldn’t ask for a better, more perfect fitting role. He would come to a team with a strong, defense first identity that was able to (sort of) mask Carlos Boozer’s ineffectiveness. Surely, Thibodeau would be able to work with Carmelo and turn him into an average defender, killing his reputation as a poor one. For Anthony, the Bulls offer the best and most immediate chance to win a title. For the Bulls, Carmelo is as perfect fit as they’ll find realistically for a while. Carmelo’s scoring prowess is just what they need, seeing they ranked last in the NBA (that’s right, behind Milwaukee and Orlando!) in scoring. ‘Melo is a 25.3 point per game scorer for his career. The Bulls need someone that can put his back to the basket and score, seeing that Joakim Noah isn’t that guy and Taj Gibson still needs to get better: Carmelo is one of the best in the game at that. The Bulls need another guy, other than Rose, that can take over and dominate games: there’s no doubt that Carmelo Anthony can do just that. The Bulls and Carmelo Anthony are perfect fits for each other.
Final Verdict: Carmelo Anthony needs to be the Bulls’ number one option this offseason. While the Bulls can’t offer a max contract (probably somewhere around $15 million without sacrificing Taj Gibson, Mike Dunleavy and both of their first round picks) they can offer the best chance and the best path to win an NBA title.
