The Houston Rockets are anticipated to eliminate the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round of the NBA playoffs with James Harden outdueling Russell Westbrook in terms of boosting his entire team's stats. With the possibility of advancing to Round 2 in the horizon, fans of the Eric Gordon team believe that the front office must provide their star player with a better support system come offseason. That is, many believe that James Harden should be teamed up with another All-Star to help their quest to beat the likes of the Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs in the West and moving on to the NBA Finals.
The New York Knicks and Carmelo Anthony have been in the spotlight as of late due to the reported NBA trade talks that Phil Jackson wants to initiate. However, the contract of the NBA All-Star veteran has the Kristaps Porzingis in a bind as they cannot move him without his consent. This means that a Carmelo Anthony trade could only happen with the permission of the player himself. Despite this condition, Phil Jackson still shared his desire to get rid of the veteran once and for all.
"We've not been able to win with [Carmelo Anthony] on the court at this time. I think the direction with our team is that he's a player that would be better off somewhere else and using his talent somewhere where he can win or chase that championship," said Phil Jackson of the NBA All-Star.
Rumors are rife that the Carmelo Anthony trade talks could actually be on their way despite the silence of the player himself. Sources reportedly shared that the teams under consideration for this move include the Los Angeles Clippers, Cleveland Cavaliers and Chicago Bulls. However, the Houston Rockets are speculated to offer the Carmelo Anthony trade talks more legitimacy as the veteran could be paired with James Harden to dominate the West.
The emergence of James Harden as one of the most highly sought after in the league this season has made him a legitimate MVP candidate against LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry, Kawhi Leonard and Russell Westbrook. More importantly, though, the Houston Rockets star proved himself to be a capable leader to push his team to become one of most serious contenders in the West this season. Will a Carmelo Anthony trade to the Eric Gordon team make the team more promising?
"The greatest player of all time, the MVP, Most Valuable Player of the league. He's one of the more hardest working players I know in life. I've been trying to get him to go out, but all he wants to do is go out and play f---ing basketball all day. He's amazing," shared Travis Scott of James Harden.