Carmelo Anthony to Leave the Houston Rockets

The most important news of the day in the NBA League is without a doubt, the ending of Carmelo Anthony’s adventure in the Houston Rockets.

This Thursday, the Texas-based franchise decided to part ways with Anthony after only 10 games played.

There were some indications during the previous several days that this might happen, but it is still unbelievable for the majority of the fans.

The official confirmation has been announced by the Rockets general manager Daryl Morey, earlier today.

“After much internal discussion, the Rockets will be parting ways with Carmelo Anthony and we are working toward a resolution”

Anthony is not going to leave Houston immediately, because the Rockets won’t waive the 10-time All-Star until he finds a perfect spot for him to continue his career. According to several sources, both Anthony and the club are working on that matter.

“For now, Anthony will remain on the Rockets roster, but will not rejoin the team, sources said. Anthony’s wisest course of action could be exercising patience and allowing changes in league rosters — through trades, injuries, team needs — to create more playing options for him.” Adrian Wojnarowski tweeted today.

For now, Anthony will remain on the Rockets roster, but will not rejoin the team, sources said. Anthony’s wisest course of action could be exercising patience and allowing changes in league rosters – through trades, injuries, team needs — to create more playing options for him. https://t.co/L5aC5Ueah0

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) November 15, 2018

The player landed in Texas as a free-agent, which prohibits any kind of trade including him, until after December the 15th. That is one month from now.

Everything started in less than seven days ago when Anthony didn’t appear on workouts, leaving the team. The 34-year old didn’t meet the expectations of the board, and the Rockets decided to remove him from any future plans. Meanwhile, the player hoped that there is a chance to improve the situation, but coach Mike D’Antoni already distributed his minutes to Gary Clark, a rookie from Cincinnati.

Anthony’s arrival in Houston had been closely monitored by the whole world. It was expected from him to create a deadly trio along with Chris Paul and James Harden, but none of this happened. One of the best players in the last decade couldn’t fit in, and what was even worse, he looked completely helpless on the court. What were once his prime weapons, three-point shooting, and mid-range jumpers, looked awful. His defense, which was always questionable, didn’t even exist, and his authority on the court simply vanished.

Anthony was just a pale shadow of once a great player.

His numbers also decreased when comparing to the career averages. 13.4 points, 5.4 rebounds and just 32.8% behind the arc were unacceptable.

Though, several sources are saying that he is still a wanted asset on the market. The Los Angeles Lakers, New Orleans Pelicans and the Portland Trail Blazers are interested in acquiring the 3rd pick from 2003 NBA Draft.

The Lakers have a young and inexperienced roster, which needs to learn a lot. Obviously, LeBron James can’t handle that all by himself. The Pelicans need one big name besides Anthony Davis, who can make this team dangerous and acknowledged. Meanwhile, the Trail Blazers do have a deficit when it comes to scoring on the forward positions. There is no doubt, that Carmelo even in this shape, is better than what they have now.

In his 15 seasons before this one, Anthony played 1,054 games, all of them as a starter. He scored 24 points per game, along with 6.5 rebounds and 3 assists, shooting 45% from the field. In 2013, Melo was the scoring leader with 28.7 points per game. Besides being an All-Star 10 times, he won the NCAA championship with Syracuse in 2003 and had been the MOP of the Final Four tournament during the same year.