While most believed Carmelo Anthony’s time with the Trail Blazers to be an audition to sign for a contender, Anthony has found himself a home in Rip City.
When Carmelo Anthony signed with the Portland Trail Blazers back in November, it was assumed that he was signing with the Blazers because they were the only team that would give him a chance to prove that he could still play. Anthony had been out of the league for over a year at the time and was seen as washed out star who could do very little to help a team win.
Fortunately, it only took Anthony a few games to silence the critics. After struggling in his first three games with the team, Anthony put together a streak of masterpiece games against the Thunder and Bulls (twice), all in which the Blazers won. Anthony has had nine 20+ point games with the Blazers since his arrival and has done an excellent job of moving the ball and accepting his role with the team.
"While all of this was exciting, most fans knew in the back of their minds that this production was probably only going to last for one season. However, in a recent interview with Kerry Eggers of the Portland Tribune, Anthony said that he would “love to stay” in Portland. “I feel like this is the place for me to end my career. It could have happened earlier, but it didn’t. Now, where I’m at in my life and my career—this is where I want to retire.”Anthony then spoke on what it has been like playing with Damian Lillard. “When I’m out there on the court with him, I’m in awe. I’ve never played with anybody who can do what he does, who can score as easy as he can, who can take over a game like he does. I’m the one who’s used to doing those things.”"
This season, Anthony is averaging 16.1 PTS, 6.5 REB, and 1.5 AST on 43.5% from the field and 38.2% from three (that’s a 48.2 eFG%, for those wondering). While those shooting numbers may not be all that impressive, they are largely skewed by his first three games in which he shot 15/44 from the field and the amount of tough shots he is forced to take at the end of the shot clock. Of Anthony’s 455 shot attempts so far this season, 61 have come in in the last 7 seconds of the shot clock, and 56 have been post fadeaways, per NBA.com. Anthony gives the Blazers an experienced veteran who can move the ball, space the floor, and exploit mismatches in the post.
Things haven’t been so bad on the defensive end either, as Anthony has consistently shown great hustle and good defensive instincts when things mattered most for the Blazers. Check out his effort on this play:
In the 1,038 minutes that Anthony has been on the floor this season, the Blazers have had a defensive rating of 112.3. In the 551 minutes that he has been on the bench, they have had a defensive rating of 112.8. +0.5 is not bad for a guy that was supposed to be a huge defensive liability coming in to a new system.
Whether or not Anthony will stick to his loyal word remains to be seen. However, this statement of wanting to stay in Portland is definitely good news. While it once seemed very unlikely that we’d see Anthony in a Blazers uniform next year, it seems highly probable at this point. And because Anthony probably values a deep playoff run over adding to his already loaded bank account, it is unlikely that the Blazers will have to pay him any more than something in the $4-6 million range next season.
Imagine starting the 2020-2021 season with, at the very least, Damian Lillard, CJ McCollum, Rodney Hood, Zach Collins, Jusuf Nurkic, Anfernee Simons, and Carmelo Anthony. That right there, is a group that can compete with anyone. And that’s not even considering what the Blazers might do with Hassan Whiteside, Trevor Ariza, and the free agent market this summer. Things are looking up in Rip City.