The 76ers Would Be Complete Fools To Bring in Carmelo Anthony
By Bobby Burack
The Philadelphia 76ers have two young superstars and just traded for one of the most ruthless competitors in the game. Yeah, things should become really good in Philadelphia really soon. But that, of course, will not be the case if they elect to add Carmelo Anthony into the rotation, as they are reportedly thinking about:
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
Just stop, don’t kick any tires. This would be an absolute, unjustifiably terrible decision. Anthony is not good anymore. He plays no defense, stops ball movement, has a huge ego, is not efficient, and, quite frankly, is not even much of a scoring threat at this point.
The 76ers do need shooters with a current rank of 22nd in three-point percentage. But Anthony is not going to help in that area with his less than 33 percent three-point shooting self.
Another one of Anthony’s weaknesses is also a weakness of the 76ers: ball movement. The 76ers struggle getting players involved and Anthony is, and always has been a traffic jam on the court. In order for the 76ers to compete in the East, and they have the talent to win it, they must play better team basketball. It goes without saying, Anthony will make that much harder.
Finally, ego-wise this would be a disaster. Combining Jimmy Butler and Joel Embiid is going to be a challenge in and of itself. Adding Anthony into that mix would cause nothing short of the NBA’s latest HBO-style soap opera.
You could say there is no harm in thinking about it, but there is. The Philadelphia 76ers do not need Carmelo Anthony, and if they do, Butler should have serious questions about re-signing with them.