Dirk Nowitzki is speaking for the entire Dallas Mavericks organization when he clears his throat, turns to Carmelo Anthony and says, “Yo, what up?”
The New York Knicks superstar is expected to hit free agency this summer, at which point he could leave for greener pastures, roads paved in honey and gold and all that cliche-ic crap. Yahoo Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski even dropped one of his trademark Woj bombs over the weekend, alleging that Anthony is “leaning” toward abandoning New York.
Can you really blame him? No, not with the way Phil Jackson has been candidly pleading with Melo to opt in or take a pay cut, and most certainly not when the Knicks have neither the cap room nor the assets to make substantial upgrades earlier than next summer.
Enter every other team with cap space.
Specifically the Mavericks.
In an interview on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas on Sunday, Nowitzki stated that Dallas would welcome Melo with open arms if he was interested in taking his talents southwest, per the New York Post‘s Marc Berman:
“If Carmelo would really love to come here, we’d love to have him,” Nowitzki said Sunday in an interview on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas.
So, um, yeah. Assuming this interview was held prior to the San Antonio Spurs laying down a mean, Spur-rific machine ass-kicking on the Miami Heat, doesn’t it qualify as tampering? Or are fines only levied when the player’s incumbent team tattles on the perpetrator, like the Oklahoma City Thunder did to Phil Jackson?
Eh, doesn’t matter. Just love Nowitzki for saying this.
Integrating Melo onto a team that already includes His Royal Dirkness and Monta Ellis would be difficult. If Ellis can become a primary ball-distributor and off-rock scorer, then it’s easier. But for all his playmaking talents, he’s never been the lethal spot-up shooter that Dirk and Melo are now.
The Mavs do have cap space, though. They have a tad over $31 million committed to 10 players. That, of course, is before re-signing free agents like Dirk, Vince Carter and Shawn Marion, so it is misleading. But Nowitzki has said in the past he’s willing to take a pay cut, and Carter and Marion aren’t going to break anyone’s bank.
Depending how much of a pay cut Nowitzki is prepared to take, the Mavericks might be able to afford Melo. Texas doesn’t withhold income tax, so there’s that to sell him on if he cannot be paid the maximum.
Still, don’t bet on this being a legitimate conversation. I’m not even sure the Mavs will make the list of teams that are permitted to court Melo this July. Chances are that field is limited to the Houston Rockets, Chicago Bulls, Knicks and Heat.
Dallas also doesn’t fit the instant contender bill Melo is looking to piggyback. The Mavs are a fringe-playoff team in a wildly talented Western Conference built around an aging, albeit damn awesome, Nowitzki. Any inter-conference move must result in the formation of a superteam, hence his reported interest in Houston and playing alongside Dwight Howard and James Harden.
Thinking about Melo playing alongside Dirk is fun, though. Really fun.
Too bad all we can do is think about it.
Dan Favale is a firm believer in the three-pointer as well as the notion that defense doesn’t always win championships. His musings can be found at Bleacherreport.com in addition to TheHoopDoctors.com.
