NBA Trade Rumors: Lakers, Cavs, Knicks, Clippers Deal For Carmelo Anthony

NBA trade rumors come in all shapes and sizes, but there is one currently making waves on the internet that would be one of the largest deals in NBA history if it comes to fruition. We begin with the worst-kept secret in the NBA right now — the New York Knicks are aggressively trying to trade superstar small forward Carmelo Anthony. ESPN has been covering the ongoing saga of Carmelo Anthony, and they report that while there is mutual interest between Anthony and the Los Angeles Clippers, at least one additional team must become part of this potential swap to make it work.

Numerous media reports, such as this one from the New York Daily News, have revealed that the Cleveland Cavaliers have been part of the Carmelo Anthony discussions from the beginning, since they were contacted by the Knicks to gauge their possible interest in Anthony. SB Nation suggests that the Los Angeles Lakers may be another team who could get involved in the Carmelo Anthony trade scenario, citing point guard Jose Calderon and Clippers shooting guard Jamal Crawford as potential trade pieces.

Bleacher Report also talks about a possible trade involving Jose Calderon, mentioning the Cavaliers as a primary team who should be taking a long look at Calderon as the solution to their backup point guard woes. Clippers point guard Austin Rivers is the subject of a recent piece by Fansided, stating that he appears to be a likely inclusion in a multi-team deal for Carmelo Anthony. Rivers would likely be headed to New York if a swap for Anthony can be arranged.

Current NBA trade rumors are buzzing about a massive four-team, 12-player deal that is being debated by NBA fans online. This complex trade scenario is structured as follows:

• The Los Angeles Lakers would receive Jamal Crawford, Paul Pierce, and Kay Felder.
• The Cleveland Cavaliers would acquire Lou Williams, Jose Calderon, and Brandon Bass.
• The New York Knicks would add Austin Rivers, Iman Shumpert, and Wesley Johnson.
• The Los Angeles Clippers would get Carmelo Anthony, Chris Andersen, and DeAndre Liggins.

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The Lakers don’t seem to have a reason to agree to this hypothetical trade proposal. The deal wouldn’t help Los Angeles in the short-term or the long-term, and they would have to take on Jamal Crawford’s contract as well. One could argue that Crawford and Paul Pierce would be good mentors for the Lakers’ young core, but Williams and Calderon are also veterans, so the team wouldn’t really gain anything significant from this rumored offer.

One team who would see improvement from this theoretical transaction are the Cavaliers. Iman Shumpert is the only player they would be giving up who has very much trade value, but all three players they would obtain would have a role with Cleveland. The Cavs would miss Shumpert’s defense, but this is a deal the team would make if they had the opportunity — and according to the ESPN NBA Trade Machine, this would be a legal transaction.

Many NBA observers these days are down on Carmelo Anthony and don’t feel he has “star” value in the trade market, and that may very well be true. However, the three-player package of Rivers, Shumpert, and Johnson does not seem like nearly enough for Anthony, unless the Knicks have made up their mind that unloading Carmelo Anthony is more important than getting a good return for his services.

This rumored proposal looks better from the Clippers’ perspective, as they would be dealing four backups to get Carmelo Anthony. Los Angeles could really use a scoring small forward, and Anthony would fill that role well. Until superstar point guard Chris Paul comes back from his thumb injury, the Clippers would be shorthanded at point guard if they sent out Austin Rivers, but adding DeAndre Liggins would help that situation.

It appears that we would have a “split decision” regarding this NBA trade rumor if the offer was on the table. The Cavaliers and Clippers would probably say yes, but the Lakers and Knicks would be likely to say no. It is very difficult to come up with a four-team trade scenario (involving this many moving pieces) that would be a plus for everyone involved. This colossal deal is a very engrossing one to dissect, but if Carmelo Anthony is going to be jettisoned by the Knicks, it won’t be as a result of this particular trade scenario.

[Featured Image by Alex Gallardo/AP Images]