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Now that the NBA Finals have concluded, it’s never too early to start talking about next season. For the Cleveland Cavaliers, this is a topic that will be immediately addressed, after falling short to Golden State in five games. The Warriors proved they are more than equipped to not just easily win this year, but for many years to come. 
 
On top of Cleveland’s meek performance, Cavs fans are already being haunted with nightmares of another up and coming free agent year for Lebron. This will especially be something to fear, if Lebron falls to Golden State for the third time next season. 
 
However, Cleveland shouldn’t be wetting the bed yet. We are embarking on a big free agent summer, where we know Dan Gilbert is willing to open discussions. More importantly, it’s his wallet that will also have to open in order to combat Golden State’s acquirement of the Finals MVP Kevin Durant. That being said, one of the hottest tickets on the market, as well as in the twilight zone of his career bring us of course, Carmelo Anthony.
 
We all know Lebron and Carmelo’s friendship goes way back, on top of having game experience together as part of USA men’s basketball. So what does this mean for the New York Knicks, and especially for GM Phil Jackson? Phil has been slowly turning his legendary career as a coach, too an absolute laughing stock as a General Manager. For starters, the man has failed to bring any cohesive talent together. He’s also done a piss poor job in making his young superstar Kristaps Porzingis feel satisfied with his potential future with the franchise. 
 
On top of this, Phil has been able to take the only veteran superstar he has, and abruptly isolate him from the team and the city, through arrogant remarks about why Melo would be a better fit elsewhere. Well finally there is an opportunity to at least take a step in the right direction. 
 
Sources say, “and I agree” that Paul George is the best fit for Cleveland. George is a two-way player, and many feel this is vital to helping contain the Warriors astonishing offensive output. However, when keeping in mind salary cap restrictions, on top of George expressing how he wants to become a Laker, I’m not too sure the Paul George deal to Cleveland is in the bag. 
 
We have all seen what Golden State’s offense is capable of. Simply put, even with addition of Paul George, the Cavs will not be able to slow them down offensively. The Cavs need to fight fire with fire, and Carmelo Anthony can be an ideal piece in creating another offensive juggernaut in Cleveland.
 
Now for the bigger question, what will Phil be able to attain for Anthony? If owner Dan Gilbert begins acquiring for Carmelo this offseason, Phil Jackson needs to be ready to wheel and deal. A direct trade of Kevin Love for Carmelo would work great for Cleveland, but I believe the Knicks can get more for Melo.
 
If Phil Jackson thinks for a second he will keep Porzingis happy for years to come, then New York needs to start building consistent perimeter players around him. Maybe acquiring another guy like Kyle Korver would be smart? Deron Williams I also think shouldn’t be left out of the conversation. Williams didn’t have much time to adjust in the Cavs offense before the Finals, which I feel had a lot to play in his poor performance.
 
The Knicks could try taking advantage of these pieces, do a 2-for-1 and start building for the future. Either way, the Cavs Finals loss means that the Carmelo conversation will now be revisited very seriously this offseason. The Knicks can either take advantage, and build something that will help Knick fans believe in their front office office again. They could also just continue doing what they been doing. Sit back and watch things play out, while their unhappy superstar finds a home on his own. Once again, this will likely leave the Knicks on the short end of the stick, while the greatest city in the world questions if there franchise will ever be relevant again.

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Sam Mushman

Sam is a College Basketball Analyst here at DoubleGSports.com. A former Division II collegiate basketball player himself, Sam is the broadcast personality of Queens College Sports Network "QCSN" https://queensknights.com/QCSN
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