Report: Carmelo Anthony's reps are now looking for potential post-Rockets landing spots
Carmelo Anthony isn’t out of the Houston Rockets organization just yet, but talks with the team are reportedly progressing in a way that has the NBA veteran already considering his next move.
Anthony’s representatives have begun reaching out to NBA front offices to gauge potential landing spots, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Anthony has reportedly been told his short tenure with the Rockets has come to an end.
The speed at which the Rockets are terminating their relationship with Anthony, who has played only 10 games with the team, has reportedly caught the player and other front offices by surprise.
Rockets’ Carmelo Anthony Era comes to an end
The Rockets likely didn’t have sky-high expectations when they signed Anthony to a veteran’s minimum contract this offseason, but the 10-time All-Star has seemed to struggle while coming off the bench for the first time of his career.
Even going off per-minute averages to account for his reduced minutes, Anthony has averaged career lows in points and assists while shooting just 40.5 percent from the field and 32.8 percent from 3-point range. On the defensive side, he remains Carmelo Anthony.
The situation reached its low point last week during Anthony’s “revenge” game against the Thunder, in which he scored two points on a horrific 1-of-11 shooting. Anthony has missed the past two games with what the Rockets have called an “illness” and he’s also supposed to not play in their matchup against the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday.
Of course, it’s not like Anthony was the only problem for the 5-7 Rockets, who have gone from ranking second in the NBA in scoring last year to No. 29 this year. However, removing an score-first 34-year-old who isn’t even scoring represents a pretty straightforward move for an ailing team.
Which NBA team could Carmelo Anthony land with?
Which teams Anthony’s representatives have talked to aren’t included in the report, but the timing of Anthony’s departure doesn’t seem to set him up for making an immediate move to a new team.
Several general managers and their coaches tell ESPN that they have been discussing whether adding Anthony could be helpful to them, or if there is a way to make that work with current roster structures. Nevertheless, this is a difficult time of year to get teams to make roster moves. Anthony’s best short-term course of action could become the exercising of patience.
Despite his struggles with the Rockets, Anthony might have a fit with a number of teams. Boston Celtics guard Kyrie Irving seemed to publicly lobby for the team adding a player like Anthony on Sunday.
Another organization that has already been reported to be looking into Anthony is the Philadelphia 76ers, who could use a floor-stretching forward after shipping Dario Saric away in the Jimmy Butler trade.
I am hearing the @Sixers are kicking the tires on the idea of claiming @carmeloanthony off waivers if the @HoustonRockets let him go. Definite need for Philly, with @dariosaric gone and @mikemuscala the only other option at the 4 right now.
— Chris Sheridan (@sheridanhoops) November 12, 2018
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