Prime Opportunity Exists for Memphis Grizzlies to Consider Carmelo Anthony

Carmelo Anthony will soon hit the open free-agent market. If they are interested, the Memphis Grizzlies have a great opportunity to add him to their roster.

As they Memphis Grizzlies continue to look for answers to the many questions that surround their dramatic downfall this season, it should come as no surprise if their focus lands on Carmelo Anthony in the coming days.

On Monday, the NBA and the Memphis Grizzlies alike experienced player movement around the league on Martin Luther King Jr Day. Memphis opted to use a 10-day contract offer on a raw talent from the G-League in order to fill their sole open roster spot. In more major news, the Houston Rockets finally parted ways with 16-season veteran Carmelo Anthony.

Anthony’s departure from H-Town was inevitable, but it was a matter of when and how. Would he be traded? Or would it come simply by way of a cut or release?

Monday’s news may wind up as a little bit of both. Houston traded Carmelo Anthony to the Chicago Bulls, with their plans being undecided as of Monday evening. This short series of events totally changes the game, and only increases the amount of trade and free-agent scenarios involving Melo’s name.

With the entire league being able to propose their offers (that is, if interested in doing so) to Carmelo, it will be interesting to see what becomes decided for the next chapter of his professional hoops career.

Will any title-contending teams dial his number if he is placed on waivers? Will anyone even give him proper consideration whether in a trade or on the open free-agent market?

These are legitimate questions and it is a testament to how far Carmelo Anthony has fallen. If he gets placed on waivers and receives multiple offers, he must carefully consider each and every one of them. That absolutely includes the Memphis Grizzlies if they were to reach out to the former Rocket.

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With Memphis eager to swing deals as of late, it also would not be surprising to see them get in on the mix to do a second deal within the past month with Chicago. For the Grizzlies’ own sake, a trade for Melo better bring more offensive help than what Justin Holiday has provided thus far.

Entering Monday’s game versus the New Orleans Pelicans, Memphis ranks dead last in points per game at 101.0. Even before the season, scoring was a known problem, but the vision was to depend on strong defense to generate opportunities to score on the other end.

As the Grizzlies have hit rough patch after rough patch, their team defense that once ranked best in the NBA has dwindled to only second place, directly behind the Indiana Pacers. That is surprising in and of itself, but it goes to show how desperately they need a scoring threat.

Carmelo Anthony — though only a shell of his prime self today — is a name that fits the bill plus could provide just enough offense to redirect the Grizzlies’ sinking ship.

In playing just 10 games this season in Houston, Melo remains a 40.5% shooter from the field. He was producing 13.4 points per game as a Rocket. Now, it is all about fit, and a much slower offense is something that Memphis offers while Anthony’s game desires.

An added bonus is that the 34-year-old forward has not played in an NBA game since November 8th. He should have fresh legs in addition to being a certified bucket-getter for a starving Grizzly offense. Memphis is known to resurrect veteran players’ careers, and there is no reason why Carmelo Anthony cannot be that next experiment.

At this point, with Memphis notching just one victory thus far in 2019 up to this point and losers of six straight contests (post-Pelicans), this is a move the Grizz must consider if they are serious about anything other than tanking. It is full panic-mode for some offensive fire power.