Lakers Rumors: LeBron James Hints At Desire To Recruit Carmelo Anthony To Los Angeles, Per ‘Lonzo Wire’

In the recent offseason, the Houston Rockets signed Carmelo Anthony from the buyout market, hoping that he could fill the huge hole Trevor Ariza and Luc Mbah a Moute left in the wing. Unfortunately, Anthony’s stint as the Rockets’ third scoring option behind James Harden and Chris Paul didn’t last long. After 10 games, the Rockets realized that Anthony was an odd fit to their roster which forced them to completely remove him from their rotation and make him available on the trading block.

In the past months, several NBA teams have been rumored to be interested in acquiring Carmelo Anthony, including the Los Angeles Lakers. According to Christian Rivas of USA Today Sports’ Lonzo Wire, one of the major reasons why Anthony has been frequently linked to the Purple and Gold is because of his close pal and co-member of the famous Banana Boat Crew LeBron James.

Earlier in the 2018-19 NBA season, LeBron James expressed his desire to play alongside Carmelo Anthony in Los Angeles. However, James made it clear that he has no plan to force Lakers President of Basketball Operations Magic Johnson and General Manager Rob Pelinka to engage in a trade deal with the Rockets to acquire the 10-time NBA All-Star.

Recently, a Twitter user posted a screenshot of an Instagram post liked by LeBron James where he and Carmelo Anthony are both wearing the Purple and Gold jersey. Some people perceived James’ action as a way of saying how badly he wants Anthony on their roster.

Rockets seeking Carmelo Anthony trade to clear spot for Kenneth Faried https://t.co/TguFTcny2D

— The Rockets Wire (@TheRocketsWire) January 19, 2019

Sam Amick of the Athletic reported that the Lakers “continued to be tied to Anthony more than any other team.” However, adding Anthony to their roster won’t be easy as everyone thinks. With the Lakers currently having a full roster, they will be needing to waive one player to create a spot for Anthony.

Also, as of now, the Rockets are trying to find a trade partner for Carmelo Anthony instead of buying out his contract. Anthony may be able to give the Lakers a reliable scoring option off the bench, but it remains a big question mark what type of trade asset Los Angeles is willing to give up for a player of his caliber. Despite the positive things that he can contribute to their team, there must be some people on the Lakers’ organization who think that adding the veteran small forward could do more harm more than good on their team.