The 'Melo-drama' continuous

In the 2010-2011 season Carmelo Anthony forced his way out of Denver and demanded a trade to New York. He was tired of losing, getting beaten in the Playoffs and saw an opportunity to play for the Knicks alongside a dominant power forward in Amare Stoudemire (yes, Amare once was a superstar caliber player, but injuries really screwed him up). So a multiplayer deal went down and Melo could play in his hometown of NY. The rest is history...

It seems like Anthony had more Playoff success in Denver than hehad in New York. In 2010-2011 PO he was swept by the Boston Celtics in the first round. In 2011-2012 the Knicks qualified as a 7th seed and faced up against the eventual champions, the Miami Heat. Once again injuries prevented them to play to their full potential and were eliminated in 5 games. Then 2012-2013 season came and the New York Knicks once again had to face the Boston Celtics in the first round. Only this time KG, Paul Pierce and Rondo weren't enough to stop Carmelo Anthony, he led the way to a 4-2 victory, giving the Knicks their first won PO series since 2000. Unfortunately in the second round they had to face the Indiana Pacers, a team which went on to the ECF and lost to the Heat in 7 tough games. The Pacers dealt with the Knicks in 6 games. But still, the Knickerbockers finally won a Playoff series, right? It's a sign for good things to come, right? WRONG. In the 2013-2014 season everything that could go wrong for the Knicks actually went wrong for the Knicks. They traded for Andrea Bargnani in the offseason, with Amare being still injured, they gave JR Smith an extension, now he makes around 8mln$ a year, Tyson Chandler was also dealing with injuries, then Bargnani got injured (while attempting to dunk almost from the freethrow line...), Metta World Peace took his talents to Twitter and wrote a couple of children books too, and they let Raymond Felton to be their starting point guard for the whole season... I'm sure I'm still missing something..ah! yes! On top of all that the Knicks failes to make the Playoffs! Nevertheless Carmelo Anthony played his heart out, battling for every inch of the court, trying to get the W. He led the NBA in minutes played, 38.7 minutes per game. 

With the upcoming offseason the Knicks may lose Carmelo Anthony, and I doubt that signing Phil Jackson as their General Manager will change much, as in my opinion that team is a sinking ship and even the great Zen master won't be able to help them. Melo wants to win and he wants to win now. I doubt that Amare will use his early termination option on his contract and leave the 20mln$ he can still get out of the Knicks, so he will stay there for another season. The same with Bargs, JR and Felton.

So there are a couple of scenarios Carmelo can look at once he's a free agent:

1. Resign with the Knicks and pray that Phil Jackson will come up with some brilliant plan to turn things around. In my opinion right now they are in the rebuilding process, they will probably land a rookie headcoach in Steve Kerr and try to go from there, the only problem is that they can't bring in new players and are forced to go with what they have, and that's why I don't see any success for that team in at least 2 years. And I remind you that Carmelo DOES NOT want to wait any longer.

2. Sign with the Lakers and learn whatever you can from Kobe (that he is willing to pass on of course) and become LA's next superstar. There were many rumours supporting that, but things aren't too good in Southern California too. As of right now they are entering a rebuilding process and going after Carmelo would be a dumb move, having signed Kobe to an even dumber contract 24mln$/2yrs.

3. Sign with/get traded to the Houston Rockets and form a big three with James Harden and Dwight Howard. I think Melo would be a terrible fit in Houston, as they already have one a high volume scorer in James Harden, and I don't believe he would be willing to take the role of the second best player on the team like he did in OKC a couple years back. 

4. Sign with/get traded to the Chicago Bulls. This is the best destination for Carmelo Anthony, I'm not saying this just because I'm a Bulls fan, I am saying this because it has the most sense. Look at what coach Tom Thibodeau has done with players like Nate Robinson, DJ Augustin, Mike Dunleay, he turned them into solid, team players, so think about what he could do with Anthony. Thibs provides a great system in the team's defence and offence and Melo being a deadly catch and shoot, iso, post up, all around scorer he would definately make him even better. With Derrick Rose coming back, and Joakim Noah finishing a career season, Anthony could form a new big three in the East with the Bulls. Imagine a lineup with Derrick Rose-Jimmy Butler-Carmelo Anthony-Taj Gibson-Joakim Noah. That's the dream and the recipe for multiple maybe not championships, but Eastern Conference Appearences for sure. In Chicago Melo can acheive the most success out of any other team, and being a Chicago Bulls fan, I would be more than thrilled to have him on my team. 

Playoff predictions: 2nd round

Wow. wow. wow. That's how I would describe this year's first round series. Out of 8 matchups, 5 of them went into 7 games. These were surely one of the most exciting series in the recent years, and the best series I have seen in my life. Let's hope the rest of the Playoffs will continue to deliver more breathtaking plays and nerve-racking game winners.

Western Conference

(1) San Antonio Spurs vs (5) Portland Trailblazers

The Trailblazers are for real and they proved that by beating the 4th seed Houston Rockets. The pick&roll game between Damian Lillard and LaMarcus Aldridge was simply impeccable.  James Harden never really found his way in this series, as he was shooting  a Playoff career low 37% from the field. Whereas Dwight showed us his improved offensive repertuar. , but it still wasn't enough. Aldridge's first two 40+ games set the tone for the entire series and Lillard's game winner finished it in style. 

The series which I thought to end quite fast, turned out to last 7 games. I believed the Spurs would let 1 game to slip away, but I didn't expect them to lose 3 games and fight till the very end. Nevertheless they played really good basketball, it was the Dallas Mavericks team which came out and didn't want to quit without a fight. That's why I believe this series will also last 7 games. The old veterans of the Spurs will be still tired after battling the Mavs, so competing with the Blazers will be an extremely tough job. Matchup wise, the SAS-POR series will be more or less equal, with Damian and Tony, Kawhi and Batum, Wes and Green, Splitter and Lopez and of course Timmy and Aldridge. 

Prediction: Portland Trailblazers win 4-3

(2) Oklahoma City Thunder vs (3) Los Angeles Clippers

This series will prove whether or not the new MVP (KD) can get his team past the powerful LA Clippers. Blake Griffin really improved this past summer and you can see that in his play, taking more midrange shots, playing more in the posts, he simply became a very good all around player. I believe the X factor in this series will be the teams bench. It is widely known that the Clippers have one of the best benches in the league and the best 6th man in the NBA (Jamal Crawford), but other guys like Glen Davis, Danny Granger and Darren Collison also have to step up. On the other side we have OKC, and their bench is one of the worst in the league. Jeremy Lamb is not a good option if you're competing in the Playoffs, Reggie Jackson proved that he is a valuable player to keep around, Caron Butler can get you a couple points but his age has started to slow him down, Steven Adams can be a contributor, but he's a rookie so the pressure can eat him alive. I think if OKC loses this series, it will be a sign for them that changes are need to be done. Either trade away Westbrook for a true point guard (like Rondo) and a couple of draft picks/role payers, or fire Scott Brooks. I have seen Russell's play, some headscratching pull up 3s, missed dunks, he sleeps on defence, he'd rather shoot a contested shot than pass to an open teammate. This guy is feels like he can do whatever he wants and that's because his coach allows him to make these types of plays. Russell is an alpha, he wants to be THE man in the team and that just won't work when you're playing with the 2nd best player in the world. I expect Chris Paul to have monster games in this series, he will outplay the entire OKC team, at least twice and will fight for every possession, every lose ball, every rebound and that's because this man is tired of getting knocked out of the playoffs.

Prediction: LA Clippers win 4-2

Eastern Conference

(1) Indiana Pacers vs (5) Washington Wizards

What can I say? This series really depend on Roy Hibbert. If he continues to faul out of games, finishing with 0 points and 0 rebounds, the Washington Wizards will EASILY win. I still can't believe how a guy that's over 7 feet tall not grab a single rebound in a Playoff game? I mean c'mon, during the first week of the season you tweeted that you'll be the Defensive Player Of the Year, people voted you for a frickin' All Star game and now you cannot get just one, single rebound in 25 minutes of play? Damn... For the Wizards, they have to continue to play their game, it is that simple. Nene (unfortunately for me ehh) had his way against the REAL DPOY in Joakim Noah, so I think he will have no problem with West or Hibbert. Gortat has been the most consistent player on this Wizards team for the whole season averaging a double-double every game and frankly in my opinion, Marcin Gortat deserved to be an All Star more than Roy Hibbert. Wall and Beal will outplay their (only a bit) weaker oponents, George Hill and Lance Stephenson. Ariza will have a tough time guarding Paul George, but he is an elite defender and proved also to be a knockdown shooter from deep.

Prediction: Washington Wizards win 4-2

(2) Miami Heat vs (6) Brooklyn Nets

Despite the Heat losing to the Nets 4-0 in the regular season, they still should be able to take this one. Brooklyn just finished a 7 game battle with the Toronto Drakes--I mean Raptors, while the Heat rested after sweeping the Bobcats. At the end of the day the team with the best player in the world (LeBron James) wins the series. The series will still be tough for Miami, as the Nets were formed in a way to beat the Heat, they signed a bunch of veteran role players, and acquired Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett, two guys that are filled with hatred towards the Miami Heat players. 

Prediction: Miami Heat win 4-2