Carmelo Anthony goes to New York — will Hawks respond?
The Hawks will see Carmelo Anthony more often now that he's with the New York Knicks. (AJC file photo)
Now that Carmelo Anthony is in Manhattan, what will the Hawks do? And are they on the verge of sinking in the Eastern Conference standings?
We’ll soon find out about the first question, as general manager Rick Sund has spoken to Cleveland about Ramon Sessions and New Jersey about Devin Harris, according to our Michael Cunningham. But the fact is, Sund was pursuing a deal, anyway. The trade of Anthony to the New York Knicks doesn’t necessarily increase the sense of urgency for this season, even if it dramatically changes the big picture for future seasons.
Consider: The Hawks entered Tuesday at 34-21 and fifth overall in the East, 5½ games ahead of the Knicks (28-26). If they go 16-11 in their final 27 games, which seems reasonable, the Knicks would need to go 22-6 just to pull even. That’s not likely to happen — not with this New York team.
There’s a little too much early euphoria in Gotham. The fact is, the Knicks aren’t great yet. They have two great players (Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire) but they just gave up a boatload of the present and the future: six players, including Raymond Felton and Wilson Chandler, a first-round pick and $3 million.
The Hawks’ biggest potential problem comes this offseason, when New York is expected to add either Chris Paul or Deron Williams at point guard. (You remember Paul and Williams, don’t you, Hawks’ fans? They represent the oil stain former general manager Billy Knight left in the driveway.)
If the Knicks acquire Paul or Williams, and the Hawks don’t do something significant to improve their core, they’ll drop like a brick in the East.
The Hawks obviously need point guard help. But to make a huge-impact trade would likely mean dealing a major piece, like which probably won’t happen right now. Josh Smith is the most obvious candidate but ownership has been resistant to moving him.
Where the Hawks are fading in the East is with their three-player core (Smith-Joe Johnson-Al Horford). The blueprint for success of teams seeking a title is to have three stars to build around. Boston was the first to this a few years ago. Take a look at these conference six teams, listed in order of record:
♦ BOSTON: Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen.
♦ MIAMI: Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Chris Bosh.
♦ CHICAGO: Derrick Rose, Carlos Boozer, Luol Deng or Joakim Noah.
♦ ORLANDO: Dwight Howard, Jameer Nelson, Jason Richardson.
♦ ATLANTA: Johnson, Horford, Smith.
♦ NEW YORK: Anthony, Stoudemire, Chauncey Billups (with Paul or Williams possibly replacing him next year).
This gets back to what we discussed the other day. If the Johnson-Horford-Smith core doesn’t make significant progress in the playoffs, it will be time to make a significant change, because the Hawks have ridden this bunch long enough. And they’ve got nothing to match Carmelo Anthony.
By Jeff Schultz
♦
Instant Re-post
– Braves’ contract extension to Frank Wren well deserved
– VIDEO: Former Georgia Tech assistant suspended for hitting player
– Hawks’ Rick Sund puts onus on players: ‘Challenge is up to them’
Follow me on Twitter @JeffSchultzAJC; friend me at Facebook.com/JeffSchultzAJC
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
153 comments Add your comment
nobody
February 22nd, 2011
12:09 pm
Ok we need to get things straight. The only team that is good solely because of their Big 3 is the Miami Heat and that is because Wade and Bosh are top 5 players in the WORLD. The other teams are great because on top of their top 3 they have great secondary players. The Hawks Bench and other players are lacking
Najeh Davenpoop
February 22nd, 2011
12:12 pm
“because Wade and Bosh are top 5 players in the WORLD.”
Bosh isn’t even a top 5 power forward in the NBA. Maybe you mean LeBron. I hope so.
Najeh Davenpoop
February 22nd, 2011
12:13 pm
“How come all the players like to visit or live here in the offseason but don’t want to play in Atlanta?”
The same reason there are a ton of NBA fans in Atlanta who couldn’t care less about the Hawks — because they are a poorly run organization and have been for their entire 40+ year existence in this city.
Najeh Davenpoop
February 22nd, 2011
12:15 pm
I’d love to see Dwight in Atlanta though. I still hate Terry Stotts for winning those meaningless games at the end of the 2003-04 season and taking the Hawks out of the running for the #1 pick. Imagine if the Hawks had gotten Dwight and Smoove in that draft — you add Joe Johnson via trade the next year and someone from the fairly deep 2005 draft and you’re looking at a very legit contender.
dirtyo11
February 22nd, 2011
12:17 pm
We need Josh Smith, he’s a game changer. Yeah he’s inmature at times but K.G. is inmature also and he has a ring. Watch Smih on the court he puts players in the right position, i have seen him tell JJ, M. Williams and others where to go.
I like Teague and think he will be a good PG in the league if he get’s a veteran to develope him, Bibby not doing it because he’s trying to keep his job.
We need to keep Crawford coming off the bench and get rid of Mo Evans, M Williams and Bibby via trade.
Trade M. Williams, Evans, Bibby and 1st rnd draft for a PG, C and backup SF.
M. Williams, Evans and 1st rnd(2012) for Gortat/Petritus or Nene/J.R. Smith
Bibby, 1st rnd and 2nd rnd for either D. Harris, R. Felton, A. Brooks or Mo. Williams
ole richie
February 22nd, 2011
12:17 pm
how bout josh and marvin for nene and gallinari. nene is a good big and the nuggetts are trying to get rid of gallinari plus he can shoot
Ryan
February 22nd, 2011
12:18 pm
Bosh as a top player is laughable. But back to trades, I say we trade for Devin Harris, Jamal for Harris straight works financially. Then we should trade Josh Smith for a center like Gortat. Then we would have a real center, a real PG and our entire line-up would be solid. We could get a center + some bench players for Josh Smith.
Hot err
February 22nd, 2011
12:18 pm
We were dead the minute the ink dried on JJ’s contract. We coulda put ourselves in position to go sign a real top ten player. Now we are saddled with what will be remembered as one of the worst signings in NBA history.
HWJ
February 22nd, 2011
12:19 pm
Why wouldn’t the Hawks go after Ray Felton? You could trade teague and marvin for him… Ray is a good young point guard… heck you can get better than Marvin on free agent market… problem is no one wants him
Tech Stinger
February 22nd, 2011
12:21 pm
Dwight Howard coming back to atlanta??? Somebody on this blog is on drugs and we just gave Joe a max deal. But there is nothing wrong wit dreaming.
HWJ
February 22nd, 2011
12:22 pm
also we should trade our draft pick… we obv always balk in draft so might as well go after a proven talent.. only draft picks i liked in the past six years are josh and al… Al was lucky because we got that pick from the suns (cant believe we didnt mess that up) and josh was a mid first round pick in 04, which was the only good thing Billy Knight did in his draft history…
ole richie
February 22nd, 2011
12:25 pm
nene and jr smith would give us a spark
ASHCAN.
February 22nd, 2011
12:26 pm
It don’t matter if the hawks are 5th seed behind the knicks when regular season end,the question is will they beat them in a 7 game series.Jeff i noticed you didn’t add chauncy billups to the big three or four players for the knicks,why? he’s better than any hawks point guards right now even being older in age.
nobody
February 22nd, 2011
12:26 pm
I definitely meant Wade and Lebron. NOT BOSH
Veteran Fan
February 22nd, 2011
12:31 pm
Josh, JJ, Zaza, Marvin, and Bibby to the Nets for Harris, Favors, Murphy, and 2 #1s. works for both teams and we get PG, C, and potential superstar in Favors! Picks let us address some issues and increase our scoring with a trade! we have the money to resign Jamaal. SEND THE CORE TO NJ!
Buckeye
February 22nd, 2011
12:31 pm
I don’t give a rats behind about these 100 million dollar gym rats. Most will be bankrupt a year or two after the contract expires.
Righteous
February 22nd, 2011
12:34 pm
Not even a honorable mention for the WORLD champion Lakers ( Kobe, Gasol,Odom/Bynum)????????????????????
Najeh Davenpoop
February 22nd, 2011
12:42 pm
Apparently the Nuggets are offering Nene a contract extension. I doubt that he’s available in any trade at this point.
J.J.M.
February 22nd, 2011
12:51 pm
trade jamal and teague for devin harris and anthony morrow…trade marvin, zaza, and a 2nd round pick for nuggets nene…new line up devin harris at the pg. joe johnson shooting guard…josh smith small forward…horford power forward..and nene at center…morrow and bibby on the becnch
Stuart
February 22nd, 2011
1:03 pm
How about a 3 team trade: we send Teague and Evans and a 2nd round pick to Cleveland, send Marvin to Houston, Cleveland sends Moon to Houston, and we get Sessions from Cleveland, and Battier and Budinger from Houston. It works on the trade machine.
This would give us depth at power forward, and more of a defensive presence with Battier. It would also be a good fix for the point guard problem; still not much D at the spot, but more facilitating and more movement/driving to the basket. Yes, we would give up Teague and Marvin, both of whom have up sides. But, we need point guard help now, and between Joe, Josh, Jamal, and Al taking shots, will Marvin really get a chance to fully blossom in ATL anyway? I would figure Houston would be interested, as they would get Marvin, a younger SF with much more potential. Cleveland would get a young guard with potential who is cheaper than Sessions, plus a pick for the future (as they’re not going anywhere now). It may have to be contingent upon Battier signing an extension with ATL at the same salary he is making now, just because he is in his last year, and if he leaves, that wouldn’t be worth it. The trade machine gives us 12 more wins with the trade. Given that Cleveland and Houston are essentially shopping these players, why not?
phil
February 22nd, 2011
1:07 pm
The Hawks haven’t been relevant since May 1988. We’re not LA, we’re not Boston, we’re not Chicago, San antonio nor Detroit. We’re the Hawks and that sinking like a rock is already underway. We never pick up, nor even try to pick up, great players and therefore we never get past round 2….ever….not once in 40 plus years….save your money and stay home.
Ted Striker
February 22nd, 2011
1:17 pm
NYC! The Knicks! Melo!
Jeff, you are gonna get job offers from ESPN if you keep mentioning sports teams & athletes who play OTP, outside the perimeter.
I think it’s good stuff though. And with a Hawks tie-in to boot. Now, you just need to figure out how to tie in some SI swimsuit model to a column.
Mike10
February 22nd, 2011
1:29 pm
Just talking isn’t going to make this team any better.Make a move!
Tosh.No
February 22nd, 2011
1:35 pm
Who cares the Hawks suck and won’t make it out of the first round this year or any other year for the foreseeable future. The only chance to get this team up to contention is if we got Kobe Bryant, which ain’t happening.
Tosh.No
February 22nd, 2011
1:37 pm
And Marvin Williams sucks, just cut him already.
John
February 22nd, 2011
1:40 pm
You wonder why Atlanta sports fans are a joke, please read all previous comments. Some of the trades you guys have thrown out there are crazy. Remember this isn’t NBA Live! The Hawks have ZERO flexibility b/c of JJ’s contract.
Puzzled
February 22nd, 2011
2:00 pm
Josh Smith is the most explosive player on the Hawks’ roster. If they could only get him to play consistent, and under control, he would dominate. That would change the Hawks’ outlook greatly. Don’t know what the factors are that cause him not be focused and consistent.
His mid-range game has improved, but he insist on stretching it beyond his current abilities. That, he should work on in the off season.
It’s not Bibby’s fault that the Hawks can’t draft and develop a PG to replace him. They’ve struggled with this (starting PG) for the better part of 7 years. When Bibby came in, I didn’t consider him a long term solution, which is what he’s been forced to become, but a bridge to the next PG.
The Hawks have blown opportunity many times over to correct the deficit at PG.
The Dude Abides
February 22nd, 2011
2:07 pm
OK after careful thought this is the trade that fits our needs, Point Guard and Center:
Atlanta gets: G Devin Harris and PF/C Troy Murphy
New Jersey gets: G Jamal Crawford, G Mike Bibby and F Maurice Evans
Nets will have Crawfords Expiring and Evans expiring and we get Murphy’s expiring and a legit PG.
James
February 22nd, 2011
2:15 pm
The Hawks should go after either Chris Paul or Deron Williams whichever one don’t sign with the Knicks the Hawks should sign him.
Puzzled
February 22nd, 2011
2:19 pm
Jeff,
Forget the long range numbers. Remember the Braves last season and the long range numbers made it seem impossible for the Phillies to catch them. Not only did they catch them, they beat them by 6 games.
If the Hawks experience a 3 game losing streak (quite possible on this road trip), and the Knicks win their next 3, it’s a 2.5 game difference. That’s not a lot to overcome when you have a Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde team like the Hawks.
Now that I’ve put it out there, let’s watch the Hawks go on a roll on the remainder of this trip, and get the ship straighten out.
CavilierJones
February 22nd, 2011
2:20 pm
I find it odd and very strange when people are pigeon-holeing the Hawks all-star/superstar players they somehow forget to mention Jamal Crawford who is, in my opinion, THE DIFFERENCE MAKER. Jamal is who makes the Hawks an elite team. Without Jamal the Hawks would be a 37-win team. With Jamal the Hawks are a championship contender capable of winning 60 games. The Hawks should have acquired either Dirk Norwinski or LaBron James to help them win a title this season.
Tremaine
February 22nd, 2011
2:28 pm
It is clear the hawks don’t want to start Teague because they are trying to get to 50 wins so the Larry Drew hiring want look like one of the many dumb decisions that management has made. TO LATE! “GIVE TEAGUE A CHANCE!”
Hawks greatest fan
February 22nd, 2011
2:32 pm
If you look at this Carmelo trade with the Knicks, you cannot forget about Chauncey Billups. With him, the Knicks do have a big 3. Chauncey won a ring in Detroit, and although he is 34 he is still better than any point guard in Atlanta.
John Brown
February 22nd, 2011
3:14 pm
How bout we get Devin Harris AND Ramon Sessions, and Marc Gasol, and not give up too much? 4 teams would get good things in this 4 team trade(some seeking cap relief, others young talent,others role players,etc.).
Link is:
http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=4f8eq2v
niremetal
February 22nd, 2011
3:31 pm
The potential problem comes this offseason, when New York is expected to add either Chris Paul or Deron Williams at point guard.
It’s amazing how you continue to post without having the faintest inkling of a hint of a clue about the NBA salary cap.
The Game Has Changed
February 22nd, 2011
3:56 pm
Veteran Fan, are you serious. That would be the worst trade in modern history. Why would give up a winning team for a bunch of losers? Also Bibby might not be what he use to be but he doesnt turn the ball over and you cant still it from him. I know we should have drafted Paul or Williams but what have they done in the playoffs? Nothing. And they both had talent around them. So why does everyone think they would have come to Atlanta and been the next Magic Johnson
ATL FAN
February 22nd, 2011
4:07 pm
Can people stop proposing stupid ass trades that have no chance of happening??
JeJe
February 22nd, 2011
4:08 pm
Yes, Carmelo forced a trade because the Knicks HAD PLAYERS TO TRADE. The roster is depleted pretty much. They will wait out their contracts and probably sign for less. Sorry if Utah or New Orleans won’t take back Landry Fields and dirty toilet paper for their stud PGS
Jason
February 22nd, 2011
4:10 pm
We need a point guard like many before have stated, but Devin Harris is not that guy. The following would fit into our system: Steph Curry, Chris Paul (who we should’ve taken in the draft), George Hill, Raymond Felton, and Tyreke Evans. You may have noticed a trend — Youth — the Hawks must go young.
JeJe
February 22nd, 2011
4:13 pm
Carmelo was ABLE TO BE TRADED because there were quality players in return. Who exactly would the Jazz or Hornets take in return for their superstar PGs?
ATL4Life
February 22nd, 2011
4:51 pm
Keep Marvin, trade Jamal, zaza, and Evans to get a point guard. Let josh powell play power forward, Josh smith small forward, horford center, bibby at sixth man, joe at shooting, and whoever we get at point.
BigTimeTECHFan
February 22nd, 2011
4:57 pm
what ever happened to Jordan Crawford, he was awesome in NCAA, D Wade type player. Is he hurt.
M Williams, J Crawford, Bibby For
Roy Hibbert, A.J. Price, Danny Granger
BigTimeTECHFan
February 22nd, 2011
4:58 pm
Zaza and a draft pick
Jeff Schultz
February 22nd, 2011
5:22 pm
Righteous — I was just talking about teams in the East. Obviously the Lakers would be in there if I was including Western Conference teams (as would San Antonio, at least).
Jeff Schultz
February 22nd, 2011
5:23 pm
HWJ — I’d love Raymond Felton here. So would most, IMO.
Jeff Schultz
February 22nd, 2011
5:24 pm
Ted Striker — if I work in the S.I. Swimsuit models and Aaron Murray’s ankle, I’m golden.
Gamer
February 22nd, 2011
5:25 pm
The Hawks should jockey for Mozgov….
The Game Has Changed
February 22nd, 2011
5:36 pm
We need to stop trying to make so many changes. Its good to dream but Sund is not aggresive. I think Mike Woodson took us as far as we could go. It was up to management to take us to the next level by adding key pieces. Like a center and a point guard. But they didnt and now the fans have to suffer with a team that wont make it to the 2nd round
The Game Has Changed
February 22nd, 2011
5:42 pm
Hot Err, we need Joe. His contract is not as bad as Micheal Reed for the Bucks. He makes 18 million a year and has played in only 36 games in two years.
Ken Strickland
February 22nd, 2011
6:08 pm
I believe the ASG wants to hold onto their expiring contracts, and will only trade for a PG who’s salary fits within our $3.63M trade exception. Having Jamal Crawford’s services for the remainder of the season and playoffs, and having his expiring contract come off the books after the season, is far more important to them than any player they can get for him in a trade.However, I due think they would consider using MEvans’ $2.5M expiring contract, along with a player like Zaza or Bibby, to acquire a player like DHarris and his $9M contract.
NIREMETAL-Your explanation of the trade exception was correct, and I totally misunderstood what you were saying.