NBA Rumors: Damian Lillard Reveals Chances That Carmelo Anthony Would Be Joining Trail Blazers This Summer
When he demanded a trade from the New York Knicks in the summer of 2017, Carmelo Anthony received plenty of interest from NBA teams who wanted to boost their chance of contending for the NBA championship title. Having a no-trade clause in his contract, Anthony had full control regarding his next landing spot. Before the Knicks sent him to the Oklahoma City Thunder, one of the NBA teams who heavily recruited Anthony was the Portland Trail Blazers. During that time, Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum had been vocal with their desire of playing alongside Anthony in Portland.
Though he failed to convince Carmelo Anthony to waive his no-trade clause for the Trail Blazers in the 2017 NBA offseason, Damian Lillard once again tried to recruit the 10-time NBA All-Star last summer. Unfortunately, Anthony snubbed the Trail Blazers for the second time and ended up teaming up with Chris Paul and James Harden on the Houston Rockets. Now that Anthony remains available on the free agency market, Lillard was asked on The Joe Budden Podcast, which is currently available on Twitter, if he still has any interest in having the veteran small forward on his team.
After failing to bring him to Portland twice, Damian Lillard gave a firm answer regarding the chances that Carmelo Anthony would be joining the Trail Blazers this summer.
“I tried, two years ago I tried to get ‘Melo to come to Portland, and he went to Oklahoma City,” Lillard said, as quoted by Slam Online. “Then after that, I tried to get him to come to Portland again, and he went to Houston. So at this point … I’m like, ‘he ain’t coming here,’ you know what I’m saying? He deserves to be in the League, but he ain’t coming here.”
"He deserves to be in the League.” https://t.co/bn8IfSTA00
— SLAM (@SLAMonline) September 3, 2019
The outcome of the 2018-19 NBA season proved that the Trail Blazers still need more star power in order to be a legitimate title contender in the league. However, it makes a lot of sense why they are passing on the opportunity of adding Carmelo Anthony on their roster. Though Anthony could still be a reliable contributor on the offensive end of the floor, his failed stints with the Thunder and the Rockets where he struggled to make himself fit alongside other NBA superstars like Russell Westbrook, Paul George, Chris Paul, and James Harden were a clear warning for the Trail Blazers.
Instead of boosting their chance of winning an NBA championship title, pairing Carmelo Anthony with Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum could do harm more than good for the Trail Blazers. However, though the Trail Blazers are no longer interested in signing him, Anthony remains hopeful that he can find a new home before the start of the 2019-20 NBA season.
